TMNT 2012: The Fellowship of the Ring
by Calmoose415
Summary: The future of Middle-Earth rests in the the One Ring of power, which has been lost for centuries. Powerful forces of evil are unrelenting in searching for it. But fate has placed the ring in the hands of a young turtle named Leonardo, who inherits the ring and steps into legend. A daunting task now lies ahead for Leo - to destroy the One Ring in the fires of Mount Doom.
1. The One Ring

**Hey, guys! Calmoose here! Back with another story! This will be Lord of the Rings but with the Turtles and other characters in their places, as well as an O.C or two. This fanfic will will have elements mainly from the TMNt 2012 series and the Peter Jackson films, but it will also include characters from other TMNT series, as well as some elements in Ralph Bakshi's 1977 animated Lord of the Rings. So enjoy!**

**I don't own TMNT or Lord of the Rings.**

**The former belongs to Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird and the ladder belongs to J.R.R Tolkien. O.C's belong to me.**

**Chapter 1: Prologue**

"_The world is changed. I feel it in the water. I feel it in the earth. I smell it in the air. Much that once was is lost. For none now live who remember it. It began with the forging of the great rings. Three were __given to the elves, immortal, wisest, and fairest amongst all beings. Seven to the dwarf lords, great miners and craftsmen of the mountain halls. And nine, nine rings were given to the race of mortals, who above all else, desire power. For within these rings was bound the strength and will to govern each race. But they were all of them deceived, for another ring was made. In the land of Mordor, in the fires of Mount Doom, the dark lord, simply known as the Shredder, forged in secret a master ring to control all others. And into this ring, he poured his cruelty, his rage, and his will to dominate all. One ring to rule them all. One by one, free-lands of Middle-Earth fell to the power of the ring. But there were some who resisted. A last alliance of mortals and Elves marched against the armies of the Shredder. And on the slopes of Mount Doom, they fought for the freedom of Middle-Earth, against his army of foot soldiers and orcs. As the forces of good and evil clashed, victory seemed near for the free people of Middle-Earth. But the power of the ring could not be undone. With the power of the one ring, the Shredder seemed unstoppable as he decimated the forces of light with ease. It was in that moment, when all hope faded, that Miyamoto Musashi, son of the king, took up his father's katana and sliced the one ring off the Shredder's finger. Shredder, the enemy of the free people of Middle-Earth, had been defeated. The ring passed to Musashi, who had this one chance to destroy the evil of the Shredder forever. But the hearts of mortals are easily corrupted, and the ring of power has a will of it's own. It betrayed Musashi to his death. And some things that shouldn't have been forgotten were lost. Over time, history became legend, legend became myth, and for two thousand years, the ring passed out of all knowledge. Until, when chance came, it ensnared a new bearer. The ring came to the creature, Gollum, who took it deep into the tunnels of the Misty Mountains. And there, it consumed him. The ring brought to Gollum unnatural long life. For five hundred years it poisoned his mind. And in the gloom of Gollum's cave, it waited. Darkness crept back into the forest of the world. Rumor grew of a shadow in the east, whispers of a nameless fear. And the ring of power deceived, it's time had now come. It abandoned Gollum. But something happened then that the ring did not intend. It was picked up by the most unlikely creature imaginable. A turtle, Bilbo Hamato of the shire. For the time will soon come, when turtles will shape the fortunes of all._

**So yeah. It's not much, but yes, that's the prologue. And yes, Bilbo is a turtle in this. So please, no flames!**


	2. The Shire

Chapter 2: The Shire

_60 years later..._

Out in the woods of the Shire, a young humanoid turtle lay against a tree, his three fingered hands clasped on a small leather bound book as he read comfortably. It was a hot summer day, and the tree he leaned against provided some much needed shade. He had forrest green scales, a brown leather belt around his waist, and a blue mask over his dark blue eyes.

His name was Leonardo Hamato, but his brothers and friends called him Leo.

In the distance, Leonardo heard the gentle clip clop of an approaching cart and horse. He paid no mind to it until he heard the sound of a deep and wise voice humming and growing louder with each passing second, he sat up and listened before confirming his suspicions. Excited, Leo stood up and careened down the hill, jumping over logs, and dodging tree branches before finally reaching a small bank above the road.

Coming his way was small green cart, pulled by large brown horse. In the back of the cart were many different kinds of firecrackers and fireworks as well as a long emerald staff. In the front of the cart sat a large humanoid rat, covered in dark brown fur and dressed in a grey robe that stretched down to his feet. His long pink tail twitched unconsciously underneath his robe as he held the reins to the horse pulling the cart as he continued to hum.

Leonardo stopped just beside the cart on top of the bank, "Your late." He said, crossing his arms over his chest.

The cart slowly came to a stop as the rat looked right back at him, "A Wizard his never early nor late, Leonardo Hamato," The rat told him, "He arrives precisely when he means to."

The two continued to glare at each other before Leo gave out a small snort as his face broke out into a smile, which in turn triggered his suppressed laughter as he leapt off his perch on the bank and into the front seat of the cart, strongly embracing the rat.

"It's great to see you, Splinter!" Leonardo said joyfully.

Splinter chuckled along with him, returning the embrace just as strongly.

"You did not think I would miss your Uncle Bilbo's birthday now did you?" He asked.

"Of coarse not!" Leo replied.

* * *

The cart rattled past a field of yellow lupin being tended to by a few turtles and other reptilian people. Leo turned to Splinter, "So what news of the outside world? Tell me everything!"

"Everything?" Splinter repeated, a small twinkle in his eye as he chuckled, "Far to eager and curious for a young turtle such as yourself. Most unnatural."

Leo rolled his eyes but his smile didn't waver as the cart passed over a stone bridge and towards the busy market place.

"What can I tell you?" Splinter began, "Life in the world goes on much as it has in the past age. Full of its own comings and goings, scarcely even aware of the existence of turtles and other reptiles," He paused for a moment, seeming to survey the peaceful surroundings, "...for which I am very thankful."

Around them, the busy bustle of the market continued, a few people looked up in excitement and a few exclamations of, "Look! It's Splinter!" To which Splinter regarded with a kind smile and nod.

As they rolled past the Green Dragon Inn and towards a small hill, at the top, they could see below them a small grassy clearing with several turtles, salamanders, tortoises, and other creatures pulling up tents. Splinter let out a "Hmm" as he peered over Leonardo, just as a small banner saying 'Happy Birthday Blbo Hamato!' was hung up.

"The long expected party," Splinter spoke, "And how is your uncle, Leonardo? I hear it is going to be Party of Special Magnificence."

"You know Bilbo," Leo said, rolling his eyes but smiling nonetheless, "He's got the whole place in an uproar."

"Well, that should please him." Splinter said in an equally amused tone, "And what of you brothers?"

Leo turned to Splinter, "Raph's helping to set up the party, Donnie's at the library, and Mikey's probably up to his usual craziness."

"Well, good to know they are doing well." Splinter replied.

"Half the Shire's been invited, and the rest are coming anyway." Leo said.

Splinter chuckled hearing this.

Then Leonardo's face turned slightly solemn, "To tell you the truth," he spoke, "Bilbo's been acting weird lately."

Splinter glanced at the young turtle, "More weird than usual." Leo quickly added.

"How so?" Splinter asked.

"Well, he's been locking himself in his study. He spends all day looking over old maps when he thinks we're not looking. He's up to something. I just know it."

Leo looked up to see Splinter quickly glance back at the road as pursed his lips. "Alright then, keep your secrets." Leo said with a knowing smile, "But I know you have something to do with it."

"What makes you believe that?" Splinter asked.

"Well before you came along, my family was well thought of. Never had any adventures or did anything unexpected."

"If you are referring to the incident with the dragon, I was hardly involved." Splinter stated, "All I did was give him a little push out the door."

Leonardo chuckled, "Yeah, well, whatever you did, you've been officially labeled as a disturber of the peace."

"Is that so?" Splinter asked in amusement.

"See for yourself." Leo stated, pointing to of a couple tortoises, no doubt a part of the Proudfoot family, who were eyeing them suspiciously.

As the cart rolled further into the shire, a small crowd children ran down from the hills and onto the road, chasing after the cart and cheering all the way.

"It's Splinter!" One child squealed as the other children giggled joyously.

Splinter seemed to ignored the children's cries as he held a straight face, keeping his eyes forward. The children soon noticed this and stopped, watching sadly as the cart rolled up the lane.

Suddenly, spinning balls of bright color seemed to leap out of the back of the cart, causing a series of small fireworks, fizzling over the heads of the delighted children.

Splinter couldn't suppress that chuckle that came out of his throat as Leo smiled, quite pleased with the joke.

As they passed by the pathway leading to the meadow, Leonardo stood up from the cart.

"I'm glad your back, Splinter." Leo smiled.

"As am I, my friend." Splinter replied

With that, Leo jumped off the cart and headed off as the cart rolled away.

**So that's it! See you guys next time. Peace out!**


	3. Very old friends

Chapter 3: Very old friends

As Splinter's cart pulled up to the front gate of Bilbo Hamato's house, the rat wizard stepped down from his cart and walked up to the green wooden door, despite the sign on the gate saying 'no admittance except on party business.'

As he approached, Splinter lightly knocked the door with his emerald staff. The response to the door came almost immediately, "No thank you!" An old grumpy voice shouted, "We don't want anymore visitors well reserved or distant relation!"

Splinter resisted the urge to roll his eyes, "And what about very old friends?" He asked.

There was a small pause before the door finally opened, revealing an old, dark green skinned turtle. Wearing a white leather belt around his waist and a reddish brownish mask around his dark chocolate eyes.

"Splinter?" The turtle questioned in surprise.

Splinter smiled, "Bilbo Hamato."

Bilbo grinned, embracing his old friend, "Oh it is good to see you old friend!" Bilbo laughed.

"It is good to see you as well." Splinter said returning the embrace, "One hundred and eleven years old. That is quite a long life for a turtle."

He then gazed at Bilbo's face, "You haven't aged a day." He said.

The two friends laughed.

"Come on! Come in." Bilbo said gesturing for the rat to come inside.

Of course Splinter had to bend down a bit to get through the doorway. Upon entering, Splinter looked around nostalgically at the inside of Bilbo's.

"Welcome! Welcome!" Bilbo said, closing the door and locking it, he then politely took Splinters staff and laid it next to the door.

"Would you like some tea? Maybe something a little stronger?" Bilbo suggested, "I've still got a few bottles in kitchen, twelve ninety six, very good year. Oh, just as old as I am!"

He walked down the hallway towards the kitchen, "It was laid by my father!" He explained, "What say we open one, eh?"

"Just tea, thank you." Splinter called out, accidentally bumping his head on the chandelier. He quickly adjusted the chandelier before it could fall. He was about to go into the next room when he bumped his head on the board above the entrance. He winced, putting a had on his head. He kept forgetting to mind his head in these small homes.

As Bilbo continued to prattle on about his families possessions and other things, Splinter walked into the room with the fire place. He walked over to the table and noticed the old map he had given Bilbo when he helped the dwarves reclaim their mountain home from the dreaded dragon.

"I could make you some eggs if you'ed li-" Bilbo was cut off when he noticed Splinter wasn't in the fire place room anymore. Where had he gone? He could've sworn he had just seen him in there when he was fetching the cheese.

"Just tea, thank you." Splinter said behind Bilbo, causing him to jump slightly, sneaky wizard.

"Right." Bilbo said. He then put a piece of cheese in his mouth, "This doesn't look bad, does it?" He asked, pointing to the cheese in his mouth.

"Not at all." Splinter replied.

Just then, there was a loud knocking at the door that nearly caused Bilbo to choke on his cheese. Bilbo quickly swallowed his cheese before peeking outside the window. He looked back at Splinter with a grimace on his face.

"I'm not at home." He quietly grumbled, "It's the Sackfill's! Their out for my house! They've never forgiven me for living this long!"

Bilbo quickly put his cheese plate on the counter, "I've got to get away from these confounded neighbors always giving me no sense of peace and quiet!"

He then turned to the rat wizard, "I want to see mountains again, Splinter, Mountains! And then find some place quiet where I can finally finish my book." He went to the stove to get Splinter's tea.

"So, you intend to go through with your plan then?" Splinter asked.

"Yes," Bilbo replied, "It's all in hand. All the arrangements have been made." He poured the tea into Splinter's cup.

"Leonardo suspects something. And your other nephews are also getting suspicious." Splinter told him.

Bilbo glanced at Splinter momentarily before replying, "Of coarse they are. They're turtles. They're a smart lot, well except Michelangelo. But even he isn't as stupid as some block-headed brace-girdle from hard bottle."

"You will tell them, won't you?" Splinter asked.

"Yes, of coarse I will." Bilbo replied, putting the tea pot back on the stove.

"They are very fond of you. Especially Leonardo." Splinter told him.

Biblo once again paused for a moment, thinking things over, "I know." He said quietly, "They'd probably come with me if I asked them to. But I think their heart fritters are still in love with the Shire, the woods, the fields, the rivers."

Bilbo looked out the window, "I'm old, Splinter." He said, "I know I don't look it, but I'm beginning to feel it in my heart and my bones." As he spoke, Bilbo subconsciously put his three fingered hand in the pocket of his belt, as if he were holding onto something, something Splinter noticed.

"I feel...thin," Bilbo exclaimed, "Sort of stretched like...butter scraped over too much bread." He looked back at Splinter, "I need a holiday. A very long holiday at that." Bilbo pursed his lips, "And I don't expect I should return. In fact...I mean not to."

**Okay thats that. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, the next chapter will be the party so until next time, folks!**


	4. Bilbo's birthday surprise

Chapter 4: Bilbo's Birthday

It was now twilight as Bilbo and Splinter sat on the bench overlooking the party in the valley below.

"Old Tobey." Bilbo sighed, smoking his pipe, "The finest weed in the South Valley."

Bilbo took in a deep breath before blowing out a large grey smoke ring. The two watched it float into the sky as Splinter took a deep breath on his pipe. When he blew out the smoke, the smoke took the form of a small sailing ship as it sailed through the smoke ring.

"Splinter, my old friend," Bilbo said, "This will be a night to remember."

* * *

Later that night, a loud firework painted the night sky above the party with the picture of a great green tree with unfolding branches. Glowing flowers rained down for the branches, evaporating over up-turned faces of the delighted party-goers. Around one hundred and forty four turtles, tortoises, salamanders, and others in total. Carts of beer and wine were scattered about, and the tables were piled with steaming scones and savories as well as a giant cake for Bilbo.

Leonardo danced like a fool with the other people in the crowd. He looked at one of the tables and noticed his younger brother, Raphael, was staring at the beautiful salamander woman, Mona Lisa, with a dreamy smile on his face. Leo could see why his hot-headed brother had a crush on her, she had aqua colored skin with light blue spots that danced across it, bright amber eyes, a slender figure, and a nice turquoise dress to go with it.

Smiling knowingly, Leo plopped next to his brother. Raphael was slightly shorter than Leonardo as well as the second oldest of his brothers. He also had more muscles compared to his older brother due to all the work he had to do at his job as a gardener. He had a lightning bolt shaped chip on the left side of his plastron. He wore a red mask with slightly ragged tails around his bright green eyes and a brown leather belt around his waist.

"Well go on, Raph," Leo said, nudging him with his shoulder, "Ask Mona to dance with you."

Raph froze hearing that, his emerald eyes growing wide as if Leo had asked him to cockroach hunting.

Now Raphael was no expert on romance, nor had he ever wished to be. He had a heart, a very big one at that (though one should never make the mistake of bringing that up unless they wanted a broken face). But while he was normally hot-headed, stubborn, and sarcastic, that would always crumble away into overwhelming nervousness when it came to asking a girl out, and asking them to dance was no exception.

"Uh, I-I think I'll just get another ale." Raph stuttered nervously, his cheeks turning red.

Leo quickly grabbed Raph by the shoulders, "Oh no you don't." He said with a smirk before thrusting him into the middle of the dancing crowd. Raph looked back his brother in shock and embarrassment before he was swept away and practically shoved into Mona, who happily danced with him.

Meanwhile, Bilbo was telling several children about his adventure with the dwarves of erebor.

"So there I was," Bilbo said in a low, melodramatic voice, "At the mercy of three _monstrous _trolls. And they were all arguing amongst themselves about how they were going to cook us!" Several children gasped at that, "Whether we be turned on a spit or whether they should sit on us one by one and squish us into jelly! But they spent so much time arguing over the whether-to's and the why-for's that the sun's first light crept over the trees and poof! Turned them all to stone!" He finished dramatically.

* * *

Elsewhere, as Splinter was getting ready to launch some other fire works, two other turtles snuck past the rat wizard and went into his cart of fireworks. The first turtle was tall and lean, with a small gap in his teeth that showed whenever he smiled. He wore a brown leather belt around his waist and a purple bandana over his reddish-brownish eyes. His name was Donatello, and he was the third eldest/second youngest to his brothers Leonardo and Raphael.

The other turtle was short and slightly plump with freckles on his face. He had a leather brown belt around his waist and wore a short orange bandana around his baby blue eyes. His name was Michelangelo, he was the youngest out his older brothers.

Donatello and Michelangelo were extremely close to each other, even though they were polar opposites; Donatello was a genius, able to tinker and build amazing things by using simple things he found in the fields within mere hours. Michelangelo...well, he was a complete jokester, unable to focus due to his ADHD problem, but he never let that bother him.

Both brothers were so different, but both were inseparable.

Mikey rummaged through the cart before pulling out a small firework, "Is it this one?" He asked.

"No," Donnie replied, "The other one, the big one."

After a bit more rummaging, Mikey finally found a big dragon shaped firework.

"Is this it?"

Donnie nodded in excitement as the two rushed into a nearby tent.

* * *

Meanwhile, Bilbo looked around before he spotted the Sackfills. Not wanting to get caught by them, Bilbo rushed over to Leonardo.

"Sackfills!" He whispered to Leo. Leo nodded, understanding. The two hid behind some tarp as the Sackfills began looking for them.

As they hid behind the tarp, Bilbo glanced at his nephew, "Thank you, my boy."

"No problem, Uncle." Leo said.

"Your a good lad, Leonardo." Bilbo stated. He then turned to his nephew, "I'm very selfish." He said. Leonardo was surprised to hear that from his uncle.

"Yes, I am." Bilbo stated, knowing what Leo was going to say. "I don't know why I took you and your brothers in after your parents died, but it wasn't out of charity. I think it was because of all my numerous relations. You and your brothers were the only turtles who showed real spared."

"Bilbo," Leonardo said, "Are you okay? What's the point?"

"I'm getting to it." Bilbo replied, "The point is, Leonardo," He paused for a moment, "You'll be alright."

Leo was confused, pondering on what his uncle was trying to say.

* * *

Back with Donatello and Michelangelo...

Mikey took out a lighted match, lighting the fuse, "Done!" He said cheerfully.

Donnie looked down and his eyes widened. Nononononono! They weren't supposed to light the fuse yet! It wasn't even ready yet!

"You were supposed to stick it in the ground!" Donnie said, his nervousness rising.

"But it is in the ground!" Mikey replied.

"Outside, you moron!" Donnie said panicking.

"It was your idea!" Mikey retorted.

Before the two could keep arguing, the firework blasted off into the sky like a rocket, taking the tent with it. The other party-goers immediately stopped what they were doing as they saw the firework launch into the sky.

The firework then exploded in a shower of orange sparks, seeming to form the shape of a big gold dragon. Fire gushed from it's nostrils as it turned back flew low towards the crowd.

It was there that crowd stopped cheering and began panicking as they ran and screamed from the dragon. Leo and Raph stood up in alarm, turning to Bilbo who was oblivious of the panicking crowd and the impending danger.

"Bilbo! Look out! It's a dragon!" Leo shouted.

"Dragon?" Bilbo questioned, "Nonsense. there hasn't been a dragon here for thousand ye-"

"Just get down!" Raph yelled frustrated as he and Leo hurriedly pulled Bilbo to the ground just as the dragon roared a few feet over their heads like a flaming express train.

The people all dove to the ground for cover as tables were overturned, tents collapsed, and food flying everywhere. The dragon then suddenly did a somersault before exploding over the hills with a deafening bang, bright sprinkles raining down!

The crowd was silent for a moment before loudly cheering in joy and excitement.

Meanwhile back with Donatello and Michelangelo, they had gotten up just in time to see the big firework as the two grinned at each other.

"That was good." Donnie said, covered in soot.

"Lets get another one." Mikey said excitedly, also covered in soot.

But before they could, they felt a sharp pain in their necks. They looked up to see Splinter looking down at them with a less than amused look as he held them at pressure point.

"Donatello and Michelangelo," Splinter said, "I should have known."

The two turtles gulped. They were in serious trouble now.

* * *

For the rest of the evening, Splinter had Donnie and Mikey clean up all the dishes and cups as punishment.

"_SPEECH! SPEECH!"_ The crowd chanted as Bilbo stepped onto a stool and bowed in gratitude at the applause.

"Speech!" Leo called out, joining in.

"My dear Hamatos and Boffins, Tooks and Brandybucks... Grubbs, Chubbs, Hornblowers, Bolgers, Bracegirdles and Proudfoots..."

"Proudfeet!" Odo Proudfoot bellowed from the crowd but Bilbo ignored him.

"Today is my one hundred and eleventh birthday!" Bilbo continued, "Yes, and alas, eleventy-one years is far too short a time to live among such excellent and admirable reptiles!" This caused a tremendous uproar from the crowd, "I don't know half of you as well as I should like; and I like less than half of you as well as you deserve."

"Was that supposed to be a compliment or an insult?" Raph whispered to Leo who shrugged in response.

A bead of sweat began to roll down Bilbo's face as he reached behind his shell as he pulled out something in the pocket of his belt, grasping it tightly and bringing his other hand behind his shell.

"I have...things to do and I have put this on for far too long," Bilbo said as he balled his fist.

Leo raised an eye ridge in confusion as he tried to see what his uncle was hiding.

"I regret to announce that this is the end. I am going now. I bid you a fond farewell!" He then looked at Leonardo who was still confused at what was happening. He then mouthed 'Goodbye' towards him and with that, he instantly vanished! The party exploded into gasps of confusion as they began looking around for Bilbo. Meanwhile, Splinter's eyes narrowed, his suspicions growing.

* * *

**Okay. I hope your enjoying this so far! See ya!**


	5. Bilbo's Departure

Chapter 5: Bilbo's departure

As the confused crowd continued to look around for Bilbo, no one seemed to hear the sound of foot steps as the gate to his house swung open. The door soon followed and as the door shut, Bilbo took the ring off his finger, becoming visible again as he laughed to himself. He then tossed the ring like a coin and put it in his belt pocket.

He walked over to his study, grabbing his walking stick and a few maps. He was about to leave when a voice from behind startled him.

"I suppose you think that was very clever, don't you?" The voice asked. Bilbo turned around and saw it was Splinter, standing by the fireplace and pinning him with a serious look.

Bilbo sighed, "Come on, Splinter," He said before chuckling slightly, "Did you see the looks on their faces?"

Splinter's look didn't change, "There are many magical rings in the world, Bilbo. And none of them should be used lightly."

"It was just a bit of bit of fun." Bilbo explained. He then sighed again, "Oh your probably right, as usual."

He went over to the fire place and grabbed his pipe from the counter, "You will keep an eye on my nephews, won't you?"

"Two eyes," Splinter replied, "As often as I can spare them."

Bilbo picked up his book from the table, "I'm leaving everything to them." He said.

Splinter pursed his lips, "And what of that ring of yours?" He asked, "Is that staying too?"

Bilbo was silent for a moment, "Yes, yes. It's in an envelope over there on the mantle piece." He gestured to the fireplace as he packed his backpack.

Splinter turned towards the mantle piece, looking the envelope when a sudden realization came to Bilbo.

"No. Wait, it's.." He paused, Splinter turned to face him, his suspicion growing, "In my belt."

Bilbo reached into the pocket of his belt, pulling out the ring. Bilbo chuckled to himself slightly as he held the ring in his green three fingered hand.

"Isn't that-isn't that odd now. Yet, after all why not?" Bilbo stuttered slightly as he stared at the ring, "Why shouldn't I keep it?" His voice hardly above a whisper.

"I believe you should leave the ring behind, Bilbo," Splinter said, "Is it that so difficult?"

Bilbo turned back to Splinter, "Well no," He turned away slightly, "..And yes." He looked back at the ring, "Now it comes to it, I don't feel like parting with it! It's mine! I found it! It came to me!"

Splinter stood behind Bilbo, watching his friend with concern, "There is no need to get angry." He said calmly.

"Well if I'm angry it's your fault!" Bilbo suddenly snapped.

Splinter was slightly surprised by his friend's sudden outburst as Bilbo continued to stare at the ring in his fingers.

"It's mine," Bilbo said, a slightly sadistic grin spreading across his face, "My only. My _precious._"

"Precious?" Splinter questioned, "It's been called that before. But not by you."

"My business is my own when it comes to my own things!" Bilbo hissed, turning to face Splinter.

"I believe you've had that ring long enough." Splinter said, his voice unwavering.

"You want it for yourself!" Bilbo yelled.

"_BILBO HAMATO!" _Splinter bellowed, his voice unnaturally loud as a darkness began to spread out from behind him, the anger radiating out from him visibly, causing Bilbo to immediately stumble back in terror, "_DO NOT TAKE ME FOR SOME __CONJURER OF CHEAP TRICKS! I AM NOT TRYING TO ROB YOU!"_

He then calmed down as the darkness receded back into to him, "I am trying to help you."

Bilbo seemingly came to his senses as tears pricked in his eyes. He then embraced the rat wizard, sobbing into his chest as Splinter returned the embrace. Splinter then bent down to his level, "All your many years we have been friends," He told Bilbo, "Trust me as you once did. Let it go."

Bilbo looked down for moment, "Your right, Splinter." He sighed, "The ring must go to Leonardo."

He walked over to the table and picked up his backpack as he headed for the door, "It is late and the road is long," Bilbo said, opening the door, "Yes. It is time."

But just when he was about to walk out the door, "Bilbo," Splinter said sternly, "The ring is still in your belt."

Bilbo glanced back at the rat wizard as he hesitantly took the ring out his pocket belt. He stared at the ring for what felt like an eternity before slowly let it drop to the floor.

Bilbo walked out the door before stopping at the gates, "I thought up an ending to my book," He said as Splinter joined his side, "And he lived happily ever after. To the end of his days."

"And I'm sure you will, my dear friend." Splinter replied.

"Goodbye, Splinter." Bilbo said as the two old friends shook hands.

"Goodbye, dear Bilbo," Splinter smiled. Bilbo smiled back before turning and walking past the gates, humming to himself along the way.

"Until our next meeting." Splinter whispered.

* * *

**So that's it for now. I will be back as soon as I can with the next chapter, so peace!**


	6. The Account of Musashi

Chapter 5: The Account of Musashi

As Splinter opened the door back to Bilbo's house, he spotted the ring, stilling laying on the floor where Bilbo had dropped it. Cautiously, he slowly reached down to pick up the ring. But when he touched it,

_A flash of images filled his mind, an image of a menacing__ samurai/damio-style helmet and a flaming reptilian eye..._

_...A symbol of evil and death..._

Splinter pulled his hand away as he winced slightly at the gruesome images he had just seen.

* * *

Splinter sat in front of the fireplace, stroking his beard in deep thought, remembering what Bilbo had said.

_"It's mine...My only...My __precious"_

"Visions of the dark." Splinter muttered to himself.

Just then, the door to the house opened, revealing it to be Leonardo. "Bilbo? Where are you?" Leo called out for his uncle. He then felt he had stepped on something. He looked down to see the ring, still lying on the floor. He picked it up looked at it curiously.

"Precious." Splinter repeated quietly.

Leo looked over to Splinter, a solemn look on his face.

"He's gone, hasn't he?" Leo asked sadly. Splinter didn't reply. Leo didn't need to be smart to already know the answer, "He talked nonstop for days about leaving. I never thought he'd actually do it."

He walked over to Splinter, who still hadn't responded.

"Splinter?" Leo questioned. The rat wizard turned to him, gazing at the ring his hand before looking up at the blue clad turtle.

He then gave a small smile, "Bilbo's ring." He stated, "He has gone to stay with the elves. He has left you and your brothers Hobbington."

He handed an envelope to Leonardo. Still slightly confused, Leo silently put the ring into the envelope.

"Along with all of his possessions." Splinter added, sealing the envelope with a stamp.

"The ring is yours now." He finished, handing Leo the envelope, which Leo reluctantly took.

"Put it somewhere out of sight." Splinter told him seriously.

* * *

"Where are you going?" Leo asked, concerned as Splinter walked towards the front door.

"There are things I must see to." Splinter explained.

"What things?" Leonardo questioned.

Splinter grabbed his cane off the rack, "Questions," He replied, "Questions that need answering."

"But you only just got here!" Leo protested, not wanting him to leave too. "I don't understand!"

Splinter stopped at the doorway for a moment before turning back to Leo, "Neither do I." He replied.

He then walked to Leo, putting a hand on his shoulder, "Keep it secret. Keep it safe." And with that, Splinter walked out the door, leaving Leo to ponder on what was going as he glanced at the envelope that held the ring.

* * *

Meanwhile, far away in the land of Mordor, in the dark fortresses of the evil, screeches of pain could be heard as a voice cried out.

"Shire! Hamato!" A voice screeched out in obvious pain.

Upon hearing this, the gates of Mordor opened, revealing horses ridden by nine humanoid cats, all wearing black uniforms with bandages wrapped around their arms to their wrists. They each wore ragged red masks to cover their faces, with only their glowing red eyes being shown. They were the deadliest of warriors, lethal assassins.

And they wold not rest until they found the ring.

* * *

Elsewhere, Splinter was riding on his horse to the white city, Minas Tirith, when he saw the sky above the mountains of Mordor.

The sky over their was grey with as a bright orange glow could be seen over the mountains as lightning flashed.

Splinter grimaced, fearing the worst as he rushed towards the white city.

* * *

After getting into Minas Tirith, Splinter walked down into the deeper parts of the library.

Inside were stacks of old torn and dusty papers and books. Splinter searched each shelve before finding what he was looking for.

He sat down, clearing a dusty desk before putting a stack of papers on the desk. The rat wizard searched through the papers before coming across one particular paper.

He paused for a moment before he began to read.

"_Year 3434 of the second dynasty,_" Splinter read, "_Here follows the account of Musashi, high Emperor of Gondor and the finding of the ring of power."_

He flipped through another page, "_Tis' come to me,_" Splinter read, "_The one ring that should be a symbol for my kingdom. All those who follow in my bloodline should be bound to it's fate for I will risk no harm to the ring. It is precise to me. Though I bide with great pain. The markings on the band have begun to fade. The writing at first which was as clear as red flame has all but __disappeared. A secret now that only fire can tell."_

Splinter, now realizing what he had to do, rushed out of the white city and back to the Shire as fast as he could.

* * *

Meanwhile at the near outskirts of the Shire, a simple male salamander was chopping wood for his fire when he heard the sound of horse steps coming his way.

He turned around to see one of the figures from Mordor approaching him.

The figure stopped just next to his house, saying something so quiet that the salamander almost didn't hear him

"_Shire... Hamato..._" The figure spoke in a raspy voice.

"The Hamatoes aren't here," The Salamander said nervously, "Their up in Hobbington."

The figure's horse snarled at him as the salamander slowly backed into his house.

"That way." He said, pointing straight ahead before the figure departed.

* * *

**Okay, done! Sorry if this feels a little rushed by the way.**


	7. Shadows of the past

Chapter 7: Shadows from the Past

_Hobbington, The Shire_

It was dark now at the Green Dragon Inn as music and singing could be heard from within the structure.

Inside, Leonardo took four mugs of ale from Mona Lisa before dancing over to his younger brothers, Donatello and Michelangelo danced like fools on top of table while drinking and singing while everyone laughed and danced.

"_Hey, ho! To the bottle I go_!" They sang. "_To heal my heart and drown my woe! Rain may fall and wind may blow, but there still be many miles to go! Sweet to the __sound of the pouring rain and the stream that falls from hill to plain! Better than rain from rippling brook,"_

"_Is a mug of beer inside this Took!"_ Mikey finished as everyone burst into laughter.

Meanwhile at another table, "There's been some strange folk crossing the Shire." An old tortoise named Gaffer said, sitting at the the table Raph was at while smoking his pipe, "Dwarves of a less than savory nature."

Shaking his head, an old chameleon named Noakes spoke, "War's brewing." He spoke as Raph gazed over to the bar, where Mona smiled across at him, "The mountains are fair teeming with goblins."

"Children's stories, that's all that is." A salamander named Sandyman said, "You're beginning to sound like old Bilbo Hamato! Cracked he was!"

"Who are you calling cracked?" Raph questioned with a slight smirk.

Gaffer laughed as Leo approached, "Young Raphael and brothers here, their cracking."

"And proud of it!" Leo laughed as he sat down with a few cups of ale. "Cheers, Gaffer!" He slide the cups across the table.

The five of them raised their drinks, "Cheers." Gaffer said as they clinked their cups.

"Well it's none of our concern what goes on outside our borders," Sandyman said as the others drank their beer, "Keep your nose out of trouble and no trouble will find you."

"Oh, we try." Leo said, drinking his ale, "But always finds us."

"Got that right, bro." Raph said, shoulder bumping him.

* * *

A few hours passed before everyone began to leave the inn for home.

"Good night, boys." Mona said, smiling at Raph.

"Good night, Mona." Raph replied, smiling back as he walked with Leo, Donnie, and Mikey.

One turtle got down on one knee in front of Mona, "Good night, sweet maiden of the golden ale!"

Raph glared slightly at the turtle, "Mind who your sweet talking, dude." He muttered in slight jealousy.

"Dude, your so in love with her!" Mikey teased, causing Raph to blush.

"Oh, stop it Mikey." Leo told him, "Don't worry about it, Raph. Mona knows an idiot when she sees one."

Raph smiled with some uncertainly, "Does she?"

"Of course, Raph." Donnie siad reassuringly, "You just need to give it time."

Raph smiled, "Thanks, guys. Your the best."

"Anytime." Leo replied as the four brothers approached their house, "You guys coming?"

"I still have some gardens I to trim," Raph said, "So it may be a while before I get home."

"I need to go to the library to pick up some books I'd ordered." Donnie added.

"I think I'm just gonna take a little walk for the night," Mikey also added, "It's a pretty night tonight."

"Alright, then." Leo said as he walked through the front gate, "Goodnight, guys."

"Goodnight!" Raph, Donnie, and Mikey said as they walked down the path.

Leo opened the door to his house. It was almost pitch black as he could hardly see anything. His only source of light being the moonlight that shined through the open windows.

Slightly creeped out, Leonardo slowly walked into the living room as scattered papers flew around in the breeze. He stopped as he looked around the house when, suddenly, he felt a hand grab his shoulder.

With a slight yelp, Leo turned around to see Splinter, who's eyes were filled with concern.

"Is it secret? Is it safe?" Splinter questioned.

* * *

A few minutes passed, with the fireplace being lit as Leo opened the chest, searching for the envelope while Splinter kept watch.

After a bit of searching, Leo finally found the envelope.

"Here it is!" Leo said, holding the envelope up.

Splinter quickly snatched the envelope before tossing into the fireplace.

"What are you doing?" Leo questioned in surprise as Splinter grabbed a pair of tongs.

The envelope was soon completely burned leaving only the Ring, which strangely enough, was unaffected by the fires.

Using the tongs, Splinter slowly took out the ring from the fire. He then turned to Leo, "Hold out your hand, Leonardo." He told him, causing Leo to blink in surprise.

"Do not worry, it is quite cool." Splinter reassured him, sensing his concern. Leo held out his hand as the Rat Wizard dropped the Ring into the blue clad turtle's palm.

"What can you see?" Splinter asked, standing up, "Can you see anything?"

Leo turned the Ring as he inspected it. "No." He answered, "There's nothing."

Splinter sighed and shook his head as he turned to look the other way.

"Wait," Leo said, causing Splinter to look back at him, "There are markings. It's some kind of from of elvish. I don't think I can read."

Splinter looked at the ring, and indeed their was an orange glowing script that had appeared on the Ring.

"There are few who can." Splinter replied, his voice barely above a whisper, "The language is that of Mordor, which I will not utter here."

"Mordor?" Leo questioned.

"In the common tongue it says, One Ring to find them. One Ring to rule them all. One Ring to bring them all. And in the darkness, bind them!"

* * *

Leonardo placed the ring on the dinner table as the two sat down.

"This is the One Ring." Splinter said as Leo made him a pot of tea, "Forged by the Shredder in the fires of Mount Doom. Taken by Musashi from the hand of the Shredder himself."

"Bilbo found it. In Gollum's cave." Leo muttered, the realization coming to him.

"Yes," Splinter replied, "For sixty years the ring lay quiet in Bilbo's keeping's, prolonging his life. Delaying old age." His eyes shifted to Leo, "But no longer, Leonardo. Evil is stirring in Mordor. The Ring has awoken. It has heard it's master's call."

"But he was destroyed." Leo said, "Shredder was destroyed, right?"

Just then, they heard a faint whispering that seemed to come from the Ring.

Splinter simply shook his head. "No Leonardo. The spirit of the Shredder endured. His life force is bound to the Ring and the Ring survived. Shredder has returned. His army has multiplied. His fortress at Barad-Dûr is rebuilt in the land of Mordor. The Shredder needs only this Ring to cover all the land in darkness. He is seeking it, all of his thoughts are bent on it. The Ring yearns above all else to return to the hand of it's master. They are one, the Ring and the Shredder."

His gaze shifted to Leo, "Leonardo, he must never find it."

Leo quickly picked up the Ring from the table. "Alright," He spoke as he walked out of the room, "We'll hide it away. Never speak of it again. No one else knows it's here, right?"

Splinter didn't respond as he walked into the living room with Leo.

Leo turned back to him, a look of concern on his face, "Right, Splinter?" Leonardo asked nervously.

Splinter stood there for a moment before speaking, "There is another who knew Bilbo had the Ring. I searched everywhere for the creature Gollum, but the enemy found him first. And admist the endless screams and inane babble, they decerned two words, 'Shire' and 'Hamato'."

"But, that would lead here!" Leo exclaimed.

* * *

_Elsewhere in the_ _Shire_

The nine cat figures from Mordor raced on their horses down the foggy road. As they road, a cranky old turtle came out of his house, holding a lantern.

"Who goes there?" The turtle questioned.

But he was cut short when one of the riders took out what appeared to be a double bladed sword, and slashed at the turtle, killing him instantly.

The riders continued on, as nothing would stand in their way.

* * *

_Back at Bilbo's house_

Panic overtaking him, Leo held out the Ring to Splinter, "Take it, Splinter!" He begged, but the Rat Wizard did not take it.

"No. I cannot." Splinter said, backing away from the Ring.

"You need to take it!" Leo urged again.

"You cannot offer me this ring." Splinter replied.

"I'm giving it to you!" Leo said, desperation in his voice.

"Don't tempt me, Leonardo!" Splinter suddenly snapped, startling Leo. Splinter then calmed down. "I dare not take it. Not even to keep it safe. Understand, Leonardo, I would use this ring from a desire to do good, but through me, it would wield a power too great and terrible to imagine."

"But it can't stay in the Shire!" Leo protested.

"No." Splinter agreed, "It cannot."

Leo gazed at the Ring, which was still in his green three fingered hand. He then clenched it in determination with fist, "What do I need to do?" He asked.

* * *

Leo opened the wardrobe, taking out several clothes such as coats and scarfs and putting them in a bag.

"You must leave quickly." Splinter told him, "Get out of the Shire."

"Where do I go?" Leonardo questioned.

"Make for the village of Bree," Spinter replied, helping Leo pack his bag.

"What about you?" Leo asked as he walked down the hall to get a few more things.

"I will be waiting for you at the Inn of the Prancing Pony."

"And the Ring will be safe there?" Leo asked as he packed some food.

"I do not know yet, Leonardo." Splinter said. "I must seek the head of our order. He is both wise and powerful. Trust me, Leonardo, he will know what to do. You will have to leave the name of Hamato behind. For that name is not safe outside the Shire." Splinter told him as he helped Leo put his backpack, attaching a kasa hat to it.

"I can cut across the country easily enough." Leo said, putting the Ring in his belt pocket and taking a hiking stick.

Splinter smiled at Leo, admiring the young turtle's determination, "My dear, Leonardo." He said, "Turtles are such amazing creatures. You could learn all there is to know about them in a month and yet in a after a hundred years they can still surprise you." Leo smiled back.

Just then, they heard a small noise from the garden that was just beyond the open window. The noise appeared to be shuffling of some sorts. And this made them uneasy.

"Get down." Splinter whispered.

Leo nodded, lying down on his plastron and staying completely silent.

Splinter grabbed his emerald cane, he slowly and cautiously walked towards the window, listening to the silence.

After what felt like several minutes, Splinter saw the flowers in the garden rustle slightly again. Acting fast, Splinter jabbed his cane into the flower bed. Instantly followed by the loud smack of a solid against flesh.

"Ow!" A voice cried out. Splinter quickly reached into the flower bed, pulling an all too familiar red-masked turtle into the house and slamming him on the desk.

"Raph?!" Leo questioned, "What are you doing here?"

From where he was being held on the desk, Raph glanced at his brother, "I was just on my way home when I heard you guys talking!"

"What did you hear, Raphael?" Splinter questioned, "Speak!"

"N-Nothing important really," Raph stammered, "Just heard a lot about a ring and some evil guy named after a kitchen tool and something about the end of the world but that's about it!" Splinter's eyes narrowed at him, sending a chill down his spine, "Please don't hurt me." He whimpered.

"No?" Splinter glanced at Leonardo with a small smile. Leo also gave a small smile, knowing what the Rat Wizard had planned.

"Perhaps not." Splinter said. He then leaned in closely enough to Raph's face that they were only inches apart, "I have a better use for you."

_"What have I gotten myself into?"_ Raph thought to himself.

* * *

_The next morning..._

The group of three walked at a rapid pace as the sun began to rise on the horizon as Leo and Raph followed Splinter, whom was leading his horse.

"Come along, Raphael, keep up!" Splinter told Raph, whom was falling behind slightly.

They soon approached the thick trees of a woodland forrest, walking through patches of beautiful flowers that covered the ground.

"Be careful, the both of you." Splinter told them, "The enemy has many spies in his service. Birds, beasts, and other things."

He then turned to Leo, "Is it safe?" He asked.

Leo reached into his belt pocket and nodded.

Splinter knelt down in front of Leo, putting a hand on his shoulder, "Never put it on. For the agents of the Shredder will be drawn to it's power. Always remember, Leonardo, the Ring is trying to get back to it's master. It _wants _to be found." He patted Leo on the shoulder before standing up and mounting his horse.

He then rode off, leaving Leonardo and Raphael alone with calling birds. Leo looked concerned at first, but then he felt a reassuring hand on his shoulder, he then turned to see Raph smiling at him softly, "Don't worry, Leo. We can do this."

Leo smiled back, his confidence restored, "Yeah, like we always do." The then fist bumped before moving on.

* * *

The two young turtles walked for hours as they passed through fields, farms, waterfalls, and over hills.

The two were now in a large cornfield when Raph suddenly stopped.

"This is it." He said.

Leo turned back to face his brother, "This is what?" He asked.

"If we go any further, this'll be the farthest we've been from home." Raph replied, slight nervousness in his voice.

Smiling, Leo walked back to Raph, "Come on, Raph." Leo said reassuringly, "It's like Bilbo used to say, 'It's dangerous business going out the door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no telling where you might be swept off to."

Raph smirked slightly, "You are such a dork, you know that?"

Leo rolled his eyes with a smile, "C'mon, Raph."

And so the Leonardo and Raphael continued their journey.


	8. Passing of the Elves

Chapter 8: The Passing of the Elves

Leonardo and Raphael had stopped in the middle of another woodland. The sun had set and it was getting dark as Raph was cooking some meat for dinner while Leo sat up on the branch of a short tree.

For a moment, all that could be heard was the subtle sizzling and boiling of the meat in the pot over the camp fire.

The after a moment, Raph broke the silence.

"So, what about Donnie and Mikey?" Raph asked.

Leo turned to look down at him, "What about them?" He asked.

"How will Donnie and Mikey take this? You know, when they find out their two big brothers are going out of the Shire to destroy a ring belonging to an evil warlord named after a kitchen utensil?"

Leo was silent for a moment, "It's probably best they don't find out. I've already dragged you into this. I don't anymore of our family to be involved in this journey as it is."

"You afraid that if they do, they'll get hurt or worse killed?" Raph asked.

Leo nodded, "Yeah, that's why I left them note telling them we'd be gone on a camping trip for a few months." There was once again silence between the two when they heard the faint sound of an ethereal music in the distance.

"Do you hear that?" Raph asked.

"..Yeah." Leo replied.

They music was slowly getting louder, "What is that?" Raph questioned.

The two listened more closely, trying to figure out what it was.

The music seemed to be getting even closer as it grew louder. Leo then suddenly recognized the music.

"It's the elves!" Leo said grinning. "Wood elves!"

Leo leapt down from his from his perch on the tree as the two turtles followed the sound of the music.

They ran up the hill that was just behind their campsite towards a calm glow. They ducking under nearby fallen tree log, Leo and Raph peeked over to see several elves walking down the road both on foot and on horse. Their bodies glowing majestically bright in the night as they passed.

"What are they doing?" Raph whispered.

"They're going to the harbor beyond the white towers." Leo whispered back. He paused for a moment, "To the Grey Havens."

"So, their leaving Middle-Earth." Raph whispered in realization.

"Yeah," Leo responded quietly, "And their never coming back."

"But why?" Raph asked, "Why are they leaving?"

Leo was silent for moment, "I don't know." Leo said with some sadness in his voice.

Sensing his brother's sadness in his voice, Raph put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "It saddens me too, bro." He said quietly.

The two stayed like that, watching the elves pass the beautiful music continued to play.

* * *

It was late now, and Leo and Raph had gone back to their camp. And right now, Raph was having hard time getting to sleep.

"Everywhere I lie, theres a big root sticking into my shell." Raph grumbled as he tossed and turned.

"Just close your eyes and pretend your in your own bed, with a soft mattress and a lovely soft pillow." Leo said, not even opening his eyes or turning over to face him.

Raph lay still, deciding to follow Leo's advice for once. But he quickly discovered that wasn't working.

"It's no use, Leo." Raph said, still tossing and turning, "I'm never gonna get to sleep."

Eyes still closed, a smile small etched its way onto Leo's lips, "Me neither." He replied.

* * *

_Meanwhile the next morning.._

Splinter rode swiftly to the Ring of Isengard on his horse.

After an hour or so of riding he finally reached Isengard, passing through the gate. The gate surrounded a tower of marvelous shape. It was fashioned by the builders of old, who smoothed the Ring of Isengard, and yet it seemed a thing not made by the craft of Men, but riven from the bones of the earth in the ancient torment of the hills. This was the tower Orthac.

Here in Isengard lived the head of Splinter's order and the most powerful, Oroku Saki the White.

Saki's tower was composed of four welded pillars of many-sided stone that stood in the centre of the Ring of Isengard like an island, roughly half a mile from the rim. At its peak the tower reached a height of just over five hundred feet. The color of the rock was a deep, gleaming black. At Orthanc's pinnacle the four piers opened out to form four pinnacles of sharp rock; between these isles of rock there was a narrow, polished floor on which many strange signs were written.

As Splinter approached the tower, Oroku Saki walked down the stairs to greet his friend. Saki was a tall grey wolverine, about the same height as Splinter. The right side of his face badly burnt, courtesy of a tragic accident. He wore white robs and held a long white staff his clawed hands.

"Smoke rises from the Mountain of Doom. The hour grows late and Splinter the Grey rides to Isengard seeking my council." Saki spoke, "For that is why you have come, is it not?"

"Oroku Saki." Splinter dismounting his horse before bowing respectfully to him.

* * *

As the two walked together in the grounds of Isengard, Splinter told Saki everything that had happened, ranging from Bilbo's birthday to Leonardo's quest.

"You are sure about this?" Saki questioned.

"Beyond any doubt." Splinter confirmed.

"So the Ring of Power has been found." Saki said.

"All these long years it was in the Shire," Splinter told him, "Right under my nose."

"And yet you did not have the wit to see it." Saki spoke. "Your love of the Turtles leaf has clearly slowed your mind."

"But we still have time." Splinter said. "Time enough to counter the Shredder if we act quickly."

"Time?" Saki questioned, "What time do you think we have?"

* * *

Once inside the tower, Splinter and Saki continued to talk about how to counter the Shredder's invasion.

"The Shredder has regained much of his formal strength." Saki said, "He cannot yet take a physical form, but his spirit has lost none of its potency. Concealed within the fortress, the Lord of Mordor sees all. His gaze pierces cloud, shadow, earth and flesh. You know what I speak of, Splinter. A great eye, lidless, wreathed in flame."

"The eye of the Shredder." Splinter confirmed.

"He is gathering all evil to him." Saki informed. "Soon he will have summoned an army great enough to launch an assault upon all of Middle-Earth."

"You know of this?" Splinter questioned in surprise. "How?"

Saki was silent for a moment, "I have seen it."

The two wizards then walked into a large room with a throne in the back of it and a pedestal in center of the room. Atop the pedestal was a piece of black cloth wrapped around some strange object.

"Palantirs are dangerous tools, Saki." Splinter warned as they approached the pedestal.

"And why should we fear to use it?" Saki questioned with no concern in his voice. He removed the cloth revealing a black cloudy glass org.

"Because they are not all accounted for, the lost seeing stones." Splinter told him, snatching away the cloth. "We do not know who else may be watching."

Splinter covered the palantir back up. But as he did, he had a flash glimpse of an eye, lidless, made out of flame, the eye of the Shredder.

Splinter felt his heart sink into his stomach as the realization slowly set in.

"The hour is sooner than you think." Saki said ominously, sitting down on his throne. "The Shredder's forces are already in motion. The Nine have left Minas Morgul."

"The Nine?" Splinter questioned, clearly confused.

"They have crossed the River Isen on Midsummers eve, disguised as warriors of the night." Saki informed him.

"They have reached the Shire?" Splinter asked, fearing the answer.

"They will find the Ring... and destroy the one who carries it."

"Leonardo." Splinter whispered in horror. He turned and hastily went for the door but it almost instantly slammed shut. He turned to see all the other doors were slammed shut as well.

"You did not seriously believe that a turtle could contend with the will of the Shredder, did you?" Saki asked in slight amusement, "There are none who can. Against the power of Mordor, there can be no victory." Splinter gazed as his former friend in disbelief, "We must join him, Splinter. It would be wisest course of action."

Splinter's gaze hardened, "Tell me, 'friend'," Splinter spoke, "When did the mighty Oroku Saki the Wise abandon all reason for madness?"

Saki looked enraged by this as he lifted his staff and, using magic, flung Splinter against the opposite wall, holding him against it high in the air. He advanced upon him as he let Splinter drop to the ground. Quickly recovering, Splinter flung his green staff forward, also using magic, and knocked Saki onto his back. The two stood up engaging in both mystic arts and weapon combat before Splinter caught Saki off guard by slamming his staff into his chest. As Saki stumbled, Splinter took this chance to repel Saki across the room, sending him crashing through one of the doors. Breathing heavily, Splinter tried to stay on his feet as he felt his throbbing head, now bleeding due to being flung into the walls so many times. Saki slowly got up, reaching out with his hand into which Splinter emerald staff flew out of his hand and into Saki's. Using the power of both staffs, Saki pinned Splinter to the floor, spinning him in circles on the floor.

"I gave you the chance to join me," Saki stated as he slowly advanced on Splinter, "But instead you have elected the way of pain!"

And with that, Saki lifted both staffs, causing Splinter to soar up high into the roof of Isengard.

**And there it is! Saki has joined with the Shredder and Splinter has been captured! I hope you are enjoying this so far. Sorry if it feels a little rushed. By the way, Shredder and Oroku Saki are not gonna be the same person in this, no flames please! This was a tough choice on the casting so I kinda had to go with this. But I will be posting the next chapter as soon as I can so stay tuned!**


	9. To get to Bree

Chapter 9: To get to Bree

_The Shire_

Raphael pushed his way through tall maize as he walked through the large field. He soon came across a clear pathway, only to find that he was alone.

"Leo? Leo!" Raph questioned, panic beginning to rise in his voice. "Leo where are you?!"

Just then, Leonardo rounded the corner of the path, a slightly concerned look on his face. Raph sighed in relief, "I thought I lost you for second."

"What are you talking about?" Leo asked in confused at his brothers sudden panic.

"It something Splinter said." Raph clarified, walking towards Leo.

"What did he say?" Leo asked curiously.

Raph paused for a moment, "Don't you leave him, Raphael. And believe me, I don't mean to."

Leo simply smiled, "Raph, we're still in the Shire." He said reassuringly. "What could possibly go wrong?"

Almost immediately after he said that, two certain turtles came out of the of the cornfield, crashing into Leo and Raph, causing them to fall down. Leo looked up in surprise to see Michelangelo on top of him and also saw Donnatello on top of Raph.

"Oh! Hey guys!" Mikey said cheerfully. "Hey Donnie, look who it is!"

Donnie, seeing he was on top Raph, quickly got up. "Leo? Raph? What are you guys doing here?" He asked in surprise, walking over to Leo.

Raph shoved Donnie out of the way, "Get off of him!" He said, roughly pulling Mikey off of Leo. "You okay?" Raph asked, helping Leo up.

"I'm fine." Leo replied. "I think the better question is, what are you guys doing?" But before he could question his younger brothers further, Donnie and Mikey started to hurriedly put several vegetables into he and Raph's arms.

"Here, hold these." Donnie said, placing a few carrots and cabbages in Leo's hands.

"You've been into Farmer Maggots' crops!" Raph accused, recognizing how healthy and well grown the vegetables were.

They then heard loud barking and angry yelling coming a small distance away. They looked over the maize to see a large scythe held high above the corn coming towards them.

"Oi, you get back here! Wait till i get my hands on you trouble makers!" Farmer Maggot shouted angrily from a distance.

"C'mon! Let's go!" Donnie said, grabbing Leo by the shoulder and pushing him through the corn with Raph and Mikey quickly running after them. Raph quickly dropped the vegetables in his hands before going after the others.

"I don't get why he's so mad," Donnie said as they ran through the tall corn, "I mean, its just a couple of carrots!"

"And those cabbages and bags of potatoes that we took last week!" Mikey added, looking back from the front. "And the mushrooms from the week before! And-"

"Okay, I get it!" Donnie interrupted, irritated. "My point is, he's clearly overreacting!"

The Michelangelo then suddenly came out of the foliage, only to screech to a stop with yelp as he stood at the very edge of a steep hill overlooking a dirt road. He was just about to back away when Leo, Raph, and Donnie crashed into him, causing them to tumble roughly down the hill through thick bushes.

They soon reached the bottom of the hill and rolled onto the road, landing in pile of tangled green limbs as they were covered in dirt, leaves, scratches, and bruises.

"Oh, feels like we fell off a mountain." Mikey moaned. He then noticed his head was close to a small pile of manure. "Phew, that was close."

"You guys alright?" Leo asked as he sat up.

"I think something broken." Donatello groaned, reaching behind his shell and pulled out a broken carrot. "Oh."

Raphael was the first to get up as he glared at Donnie and Mikey. "What the heck were you morons thinking leading us off a cliff?!"

"First off, that was a hill, not a cliff." Donnie retorted a-matter-of-factly, getting up and brushing himself off. "Second, that was just a detour, a shortcut."

"Oh yeah? A shortcut to what?" Raph angrily questioned.

"Mushrooms!" Mikey exclaimed, getting up and rushing over to small patch of growing mushrooms.

As Mikey began picking out mushrooms and Raph and Donnie kept on arguing, Leo stood up, strolling down the road, looking back and forth down the road, as if he felt someone or something was coming.

"Guys, I think we should get off the road." Leonardo said, a hint of worry in voice. However, his statement was seemingly unheard as Mikey continued to stuff his bag with mushrooms and Raph and Donnie still argued.

Leo looked down the road again, but this time their was something... unsettling about it. Fog seemed to come in as leafs blowed in a swirling wind, but the most disturbing thing was that Leo could hear a loud foreboding screech coming from a distance, as if some wild banshee was coming towards them. What disturbed Leonardo even more was the presence that he felt, a presence of darkness, a presence of death.

"Get off the road!" Leo said, his voice now full of fear, finally catching his brothers attention. "Quick!"

Wasting no time, the four brothers rushed down into a ditch, hiding beneath a large tree root that stuck out from the ditch. From behind the tree came a big black horse. The horse snorted as it champed in place. The rider was a humanoid cat creature. The rider was tall, wearing a brown kasa hat on his head, tattered red robe, a belt with a foot symbol on it, and face mask which covered his face, revealing only blood red eyes which seemed to glow in the fog. Leo looked up through the tree roots, only to see the horse's fetid hooves as they stamped. The rider got off from his horse, peering over the tree root, sniffing almost like a dog. The Turtles shrank back in fear. Raphael covered Michelangelo's mouth before he could scream, his eyes wide and afraid. Donatello shivered, breathing as quietly as he could while Leonardo remained completely still, frozen with fear. One wrong move, and they were dead for sure. Leo drowned out all sounds as he subconsciously reaching for the Ring. As he did, the rider turned slowly his head, as if he had just a stick snap. Leo felt an overwhelming desire to put on the Ring, but quickly snapped out of his trance and put the Ring away. As the rider began to sniff the air again, Donnie flung the bag full of mushrooms to the other side of the tree. The rider screeched as he immediately whirled his head towards the sound.

Taking this moment of distraction to their advantage, the Turtles quickly came out from their hiding spot, making a mad dash to escape through the woods. After a few more minutes of running, they stopped to catch their breath.

"What was that?" Donnie panted, his eyes wide and afraid, as were the others. Leo didn't respond as he gazed at the Ring in his hand.

Whoever or whatever that thing was, it was after the Ring.

* * *

Night had arrived as the rider was still searching. Mist swirled largely in the woodland as the rider screeched in frustration as he continually searched for the Turtles.

Meanwhile, the Turtles quickly hustled through the woods, dodging and hiding behind trees.

"Anything?" Raphael inquired, peeking around a tree.

Leonardo looked around another tree, "Nothing." He said. "Coast is clear."

Michelangelo came up behind them, "Whats goin' on, dudes?" He panted, stumbling slightly.

"That guy was definitely looking for something," Donatello said with utter seriousness and a hint of worry as he walked up to Leo who turned to face him, "Or _someone_."

Before Leo could say anything, "Get down!" Mikey shouted/whispered. They all ducked down into the bushes, peeking through the leaves as the rider came to a stop at the top of a hill. The rider looked around before riding off.

"I have to get out of the Shire." Leo whispered to them. He then turned to Donnie. "Raph and I need to get to Bree."

Donnie nodded, understanding what they needed to do. "Right." He whispered back. "Bucklebury Ferry. Follow me." Leo nodded back.

The four brothers ran through the bushes as quietly as they could with Donnie at the lead, when suddenly, the rider came bursting out of the trees, screeching.

The Turtles yelped. "Run!" Mikey screamed as the rider tried to grab Leo. By some thing of luck, Leonardo had managed to dodge the the grab.

"Guys!" Donnie called out. "Come on! This way!"

They ran as fast as they could down the hill with Leo falling behind slightly as they ran like madmen through several trees and bushes, stumbling ever so slightly before reaching fence next to a river bank. On the river bank was a small jetty with a small wooden raft tied next to it. Beside the jetty was a small, seemingly empty cottage.

Raph, Donnie, and Mikey climbed over the fence, making a dash towards the jetty on the river.

"Raph! Get the rope!" Donatello told him, grabbing an oar and getting onto the raft.

"Right!" Raphael said as he began untying the rope holding the ferry raft to jetty. "Leo!"

Leonardo ran as quickly as his legs could carry him, climbing over the fence and running down the path towards the raft as the rider was getting close.

"Run, Leo!" Mikey called out, fearing for his big brother's life as the raft began to draft from the jetty.

"Leo, come on!" Donnie yelled as he tried to use the oar to hold the raft in place as long he could.

"Come on, Leo!" Raph yelled, also fearing for Leo's safety.

Leo ran faster, he could the rider catching up, he could hear the horse's snorting breath as he ran.

"You can do it, Leo!" Raph shouted. Leo took a few more steps at the near edge of the jetty before he jumped as far and as high as he could, narrowly landing on the drafting raft with his brothers as the rider came to screeching stop.

The rider once again screeched in frustration as the raft drifted off.

"How far to nearest crossing?" Leo asked as Raph and Mikey helped him up.

"Brandywine Bridge, about twenty miles from here." Donnie replied as began rowing with his oar.

"Then we'll have to make do." Leo said, brushing himself off. The four of them looked back at the jetty to see the rider turn around and ride off with two other riders by his side.

The Turtles were inwardly terrified at what had just occurred. But they couldn't worry about that, they had to get to Bree as fast as they could.

**And there you go, folks! Can't wait for the next chapter! In case you haven't noticed, I'm trying to make these chapters a little longer now. So I hope you enjoy!**


	10. The Foot Elite

Chapter 10: The Foot Elite

_Bree_

When the Turtles had gotten off the Bucklebury Ferry, they were relived to find none of the strange riders in pursuit. They were pretty shaken up that there was more than one rider out there.

It was pouring rain outside as the Turtles, now wearing kasa hats to protect their heads from the rain, were hiding among a few trees in the woods.

From there, Leonardo looked around, glancing up and down the road in between the forrest and the gate entrance to Bree, searching for any sign of the mysterious riders. Once he saw they were not around, he sighed in relief.

"Coast is clear. Come on." Leo said, gesturing for his brothers to follow.

The four brothers quickly and silently ran across the muddy road, approaching the gated entrance.

"Dudes, we're reptiles! We don't do cold." Michelangelo cried. Not even the blood pumping through his veins could warm him up at this point.

Donatello looked back as they ran, giving his little brother a sympathetic glance at his cold younger brother. "Well it is near the end of September. And it should be winter soon. But don't worry, Mikey. Soon you can be in a nice house with a warm fire by your side." Donnie reassured him.

Leo knocked on the gate. Seconds later, a miniature door opened above them revealing an old platypus poking his head through the door. The platypus didn't see anything through the gate, so he closed the door and looked through another miniature door that was below the first one.

"What do you what?" The platypus, who was the gatekeeper, asked grumpily.

"We're headed for the Prancing Pony." Leo told him.

The Gatekeeper closed the window before opening the gate, approaching the Turtles with a small lantern.

"Turtles! Four turtles!" The Gatekeeper exclaimed, "Once more out of the Shire by your talk! What business brings you to Bree?"

"We wish to stay at the Inn. Our business is our own." Leo replied.

The Gatekeeper nodded, understanding. "Alright young sir, I meant no offense. My job is to ask questions after nightfall," He stood aside, allowing the Turtles to walk through the gate, "There's talk of strange folk abroad. Can't be too careful."

The Turtles trudged down the muddy lane, walking past small pastures and houses. They rounded a corner, only to nearly be run over by a cart. They walked past several mammal people before Leo spotted a sign that said 'The Prancing Pony'.

Pushing past several people, they walked across the street before reaching the Inn. Leo pushed opened the doors as he felt a wave of warmth overcome him as he walked. Taking off their kasa hats, the Turtles looked around to see tons of people drinking, laughing and talking in a large room lit by several fires. The air wasn't exactly fresh as it reeked heavily of alcohol.

They then walked over to the bar, seeing the bartender who was a short humanoid mole.

"Excuse me?" Leo asked over the loud sounds of the inhabitants of the Inn, getting the bartender's attention. The Bartender looked down at Leo and his brothers.

"Good evening, little masters." He greeted kindly. "What can I do for you? If your looking for accommodation, we've got some nice cosy turtle sized rooms available. Always proud to cater to the little folk, Mr...?"

"Underhill." Leo stated, putting on his fake name. "My name is Underhill. And these are my brothers." He gestured to Raph, Donnie, and Mikey.

"Underhill, yes." The Bartender nodded.

"We're friends of Splinter the Grey. Can you tell him we've arrived?" Leo asked the bartender.

"Splinter?" The Bartender asked quizzically before his eyes widened slightly in realization. "Oh yes! I remember! Elderly rat! Brown fur, grey robes, green walking stick." Leo nodded in conformation. "I haven't seen him in, oh, six months or so."

Those words immediately shattered the Turtles spirits. Why hadn't Splinter come for them yet? Where was he? The relief in their hearts for reaching Bree was gone with fear and worry taking its place.

"What do we do now?" Raph questioned grumpily as they walked over to an empty table and sat down, gaining a few suspicious glances from the customers.

"Don't worry about it, Raph." Leo reassured, putting a hand on his shoulder. "He'll come."

Donnie sat down next to them, carrying a large mug of ale.

Mikey glanced at Donnie, his eyes widening at the sight of the huge mug. "Dude, what is that?!"

Donnie grinned, revealing his gap tooth, "This, my brother, is a pint." He then lifted it up and began drinking it.

"It comes in pints here?!" Mikey asked in astonishment.

Donnie stopped drinking, "Sure does!" He replied.

Mikey stood up from the table with a grin wide enough to split his face. "I'm totally getting one!" He exclaimed excitedly, rushing over to the counter to get a large ale.

"You've already had a whole half!" Raph called out to him, but of course, Michelangelo ignored him and sat down on a barstool at the bar.

Leo glanced over to his younger brother to see him looking quite worried, which was unusual for the red clad turtle.

"What is it, Raph?" Leo asked, concerned.

"That guy over there's done nothing but stare at us ever since we got here." Raph told Leo, pointing to figure who was sitting on the other side of the tavern, just staring at them. The figure was tall smoking a pipe, wearing a blue kimono top and navy blue pants as well as a pair of geta sandals on his feet. He had large straw kasa hat that covered his face from view.

Curious, Leonardo turned to the Bartender, who was already passing by their table. "Excuse me?" Leo asked, tapping the Bartender of the shoulder. The Bartender turned towards him. "That guy in the corner, who is he?"

The Bartender turned to face the figure in the corner, his face turned serious as he turned back to Leo and Raph. "He's one of them ronin." The Bartender told him, "They're dangerous folk they are. I've never heard but 'round here he's known as Yojimbo."

With that the Bartender then turned to left the table. "Yojimbo.." Leo muttered, pondering the name. As he did, he subconsciously pulled the Ring out of his belt pocket and started to play with it in his fingers. The sounds the Inn seemed to be drowned out as the Ring seemed to whisper to him.

_Hamato... Hamato... Hamato!_

"Hamato?" The sound of Mikey's voice snapped Leo out of his dream like state. He turned to see Mikey sitting on a bench at the bar talking to several other suspicious customers, despite all this, Mikey seemed oblivious.

"Sure I know him! He's over there." Mikey said drunkly, gesturing to where Leo was sitting, causing him to look in alarm. "He's my brother. My big bro if ya get what I'm say'n."

Leo, Raph, and Donnie went pale, realizing that they were in danger.

Now on the verge of panic, Leo quickly got up from his seat and pushed his way through the crowd, something that seemed to catch Yojimbo's attention. After pushing and shoving past several people, Leo finally reached the bar.

"Mikey!" Leo said, grabbing Mikey's arm as he was drinking.

"Easy man!" Mikey yelped, startled at his older brother's sudden panic, shaking his arm and causing Leo to fall to the ground. As he fell, the Ring flew out of his pocket.

Everything seemed to be in slow motion as the customers shifted their gazes towards the fallen turtle. Leo reached to grab the Ring as it slowly fell towards him. He attempted to grab the Ring but missed as it slipped onto his finger. Everyone in the room gasped in shock as Leo completely vanished right before their eyes.

Mikey could only look wide-eyed in horror, the immense stupidity of what he had done finally setting in as Raph and Donnie looked just as horrified.

"Mikey, what have you done?" Donnie questioned in shock.

* * *

_The Woodlands_

The riders immediately paused, sensing the Ring calling to them.

Turning their horses around, the riders rode off to Bree.

And this time, they would get the Ring... and kill the one who carried it.

* * *

_The Prancing Pony_

_Leo rolled over and stood up. He looked around to see himself in a sort of ghostly world. Everything around him seemed to appear as a windswept shadow._

_And among all the noise, one was louder than all._

"_You cannot hide." A deep __forbidding voice said, echoing through the ghostly world. Leo looked to source of the voice._

_Now Leonardo was not exactly an easily frightened turtle, but what he saw terrified him._

_In front of him was massive flaming lidless eye, and in the pupil stood a figure._

_The figure was a tall, muscular man fully clothed in armor. He wore bladed shoulder guards and gauntlets over his arms and a large bladed helmet on his head which covered his whole face except for his eyes._

_Leo had no doubt that this was the Shredder himself!_

_"I see you," The Shredder continued as Leo stumbled back and fell down on his shell, crawling away in fear, "There is no life in the void,"_

_Leo then grasped the Ring on his finger as he tried desperately to pull it off._

_"Only death!" Shredder finished as Leo finally pulled the Ring off his finger._

Leo gasped as he breathed rapidly. He looked around to see he was back in the Inn and that the Shredder was nowhere in sight.

Seeing that he was out danger, Leo sighed in relief. But his relief was short lived as he felt a hand grab him by the shoulder.

The figure then pulled Leo up from the ground, pinning him against a wall. Leo looked to see it was Yojimbo!

"You draw too much attention to yourself, 'Mr. Underhill'." Yojimbo told him, grabbing Leo by the shell and dragging him up the stairs.

* * *

_Top floor of the Inn_

Yojimbo opened the door on the top floor, throwing Leo into the room.

The room was small with a single bed and a desk by the window. The room was dimly lit by a fireplace as well as several candles.

"What do you want?" Leonardo questioned, standing up and putting on a brave face. As the Ronin walked in, he could see that Yojimbo easily towered over him.

"A little more caution from you," Yojimbo replied, "There is no trinket you carry."

"I'm not carrying anything." Leo hastily lied, though he inwardly cursed himself for sounding so suspicious.

"Indeed." Yojimbo agreed, walking past a surprised Leo and over to the candles near the window.

He then began snuffing out the candles with fingers, "I can avoid being seen if I desire," He said, "But to disappear entirely," He removed the kasa hat from his head, revealing himself to be a humanoid rabbit with white fur, his ears tied with a blue material in the shape of samurai kits, and a small scar over his left eye, "That is rare gift." He finished.

"Who are you?" Leo questioned.

"Are you frightened?" The Rabbit Ronin asked out of the blue.

Leo was confused now as he paused, "... Yes." He replied.

"Not nearly frightened enough," Yojimbo told him, "I know what hunts you."

But before he could go on, Yojimbo heard a series of foot steps coming up the stairs. He drew a katana from his belt as the door burst open, revealing Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo. Donnie holding a candle and Mikey holding a stool.

"Let him go!" Raph shouted angrily, putting his fists up. "Or we'll have you, longshanks!"

Yojimbo simply stood up straight, "You're bravery speaks of heroic hearts, young turtles," He told them, sheathing his sword, "But that will not safe you." He then turned to Leo, "You cannot wait for the wizard any longer, Leonardo. _They _are coming."

* * *

_Gates of Bree_

The Gatekeeper sat in his chair in the gatehouse, smoking his pipe when he heard the snort of a horse outside his gate.

Curious, he walked over to the gate, opening the top window of the gate and gasped.

Suddenly, the gate was knocked down by four of the riders, crushing the Gatekeeper underneath as they rode into Bree.

They rode through the muddy streets before arriving at the Inn.

They then walked into the Inn, swords drawn to their sides as the Bartender hide behind the bar, frightened.

* * *

_Bedroom_

The Turtles slept rather peacefully in their beds as the Riders walked silently into their room, their jagged katanas held upright in front of them. Quietly, the riders slowly walked over to the beds, standing next to them before poising their swords to strike.

They then stabbed the beds relentlessly, intending to kill the Turtles.

Once they stopped stabbing, they removed the covers to make sure they were dead.

But to their hidden shock, the Turtles were not in their beds. Instead was a bunch of pillows that were now ragged with feathers falling out due to the stabbing.

The riders screeched as the turned over the beds, enraged, they had been deceived!

Across the street in another building, Yojimbo sat by the window, watching as the riders screeched and search the other bedroom, sighing in relief that they had left the Inn just in time.

The screeches were so loud that they woke the Turtles.

"What are they?" Leo asked.

Yojimbo turned to the Turtles, "They were once mortals," He replied, "Great Emperors of Mortals. But then the Shredder, the deceiver, gave to them nine rings of power. Blinded by their greed, they took them without question, one by one falling into darkness." Yojimbo looked out the window to see the riders now mounting their horses, "Now they are slaves to his will. They are the Foot Elite. The Ringwraiths. Neither living, nor dead, they are the deadliest of warriors, lethal assassins." That statement greatly unnerved the Turtles as Yojimbo spoke with utter seriousness, "At all times, they feel the presence of the Ring, drawn to the power of the One. They never eat, they never sleep, and they will never stop hunting you. Which is why you need to leave."

"How do we know you won't try to steal the Ring from us?" Leo questioned, still slightly suspicious.

Usagi walked closer to him, "Because if I wanted the Ring for myself, I could have now." He replied, drawing his katana and holding it at Leo's throat.

He then lowered his sword towards the group of shocked and slightly frightened turtles, "Now, get some sleep," He said, walking over to his own bed, "You will need all of your strength for tomorrow."

* * *

_Woodlands, the next __morning_

After having a very quick breakfast, Yojimbo led the Turtles out of Bree and into the country side with their only horse named Bill following them.

"Where are you taking us?" Michelangelo questioned as they walked past fallen trees

"Into the wild." Yojimbo replied as he led the group.

Raphael then turned to Leonardo, "How do we know we can trust him? How do we even know he's friends with Splinter?" Raph questioned, suspicious.

"We don't," Leo replied "But we don't have a choice, Raph. Right now, Yojimbo's our only chance to get us where we're going. Besides, he might be our only defense against the Foot Elite."

"Yeah, but where is he leading us?" Donatello asked, also suspicious.

"To Rivendell, Donatello-san. To the house of Bishop." Yojimbo replied, having heard their conversation. Of course he understood their initial mistrust, as he was a complete stranger to them, but they were going to have to trust him if they wanted to survive.

"Dudes! Did you hear that?" Mikey exclaimed excitedly. "We're gonna see the elves!"

For a few more hours, they continued to walk through the country side, exiting the woodlands before putting on their winter coats and kasa hats and climbing up a snowy hill.

The group then stopped to catch their breath as Yojimbo looked around the landscape, searching for a safe way to go. As he did this, the Turtles sat down by the horse, getting out their pans and cooking utensils.

Yojimbo turned back to them, "Gentlemen," He spoke, catching the Turtles attention before they could start a camp fire, "We must not stop until nightfall."

"What about breakfast?" Mikey asked.

Yojimbo paused, "You already had it." He replied, slightly confused.

"Yeah we did have one," Mikey said, "But what about second breakfast?"

The Rabbit Ronin frowned in annoyance, was this boy seriously going on about this now? He turned and continued on.

"I don't think he knows about second breakfast." Donnie said, glancing at Mikey and putting a bag on his shoulder as Leo and Raph began putting everything else on the horse.

"What?!" Mikey questioned in shock. "What about elevenses? Luncheon? Afternoon tea?! Dinner?! Supper?! He knows about them, right? Right?!"

Donnie put a hand on Mikey's shoulder, "I wouldn't count on it." He said, grumbling slightly.

Just then, an apple flew over a bush, landing in Donnie's hand, surprising them both. Being generous, Donnie handed the apple over to Mikey, who happily excepted it. Another apple then flew over the bush, this time hitting Mikey square in the head.

Knowing that they had been given food, the Turtles continued to follow Yojimbo to Rivendell.

**Now the casting was tough when coming up with this fanfic, so much so that I almost gave up on this story. But here I am continuing to update with new chapters, so stay tuned.**


	11. A Knife in the Dark

**Now before we start this, I'm not exactly good at writing fight scenes but I'll try my best. Warning, there is a bit of blood in this.**

Chapter 11: A Kife in the Dark

_Midge water Marshes_

Several hours had gone by as Yojimbo led the Turtles through the harsh Midge water marshlands. They had now removed their kasa hats and winter coats, not that it would make any difference at this point. It was foggy at the marshes which made it difficult see where they going, causing them to stumble and fall a few times in the water and the grass hillocks, coupled with the fact that the Turtles were now starting to get really tired, both from the intense cold and simply from traveling for miles with hardly any food or rest. But one of the worst things was that there were dozens of midges flying everywhere, biting into their skin. They were drenched, itching, hungry, and miserable.

Though Yojimbo was not nearly as tired as the Turtles (since he was quite used to long journeys on foot) he was still very much on edge, his eyes darting around this way and that cautiously, taking in every little detail from the environment, his ears pricking up ever so slightly. He knew the possible dangers that lay ahead of them, but had yet to come across anything that could be considered dangerous. Nevertheless, he remained vigilant.

It was Raphael who finally shattered the silence between the group with a long-suffering groan, "Man, this stinks! And here I thought I wouldn't mind some time outdoors, but this is too much! And these stupid bugs!" He growled, waving his arms around, trying to scare away the midges.

Trudging behind him, Donatello nodded in agreement. "I hate to say it, but I'm kinda with you on that one, Raph." He swatted another midge that had landed on his shoulder with Michelangelo stumbling and falling face first into the muddy water.

"Man, what do eat when they can't get turtle?" Mikey questioned as he got up, coughing out the dirty water.

"Well, usually the larvae of non-biting midges feed on algae and bacteria," Donnie explained, going full science-y mode, "filtering micro-organisms out of the water, but some are predators. The larvae of phantom midges live in the open water and prey on water fleas and-"

"Donnie, I swear I'll slap the green off you!" Raph interrupted rather rudely.

Donatello scowled, "Well excuse me, but its how I deal with stress!"

"Calm down, guys." Leonardo, who was at the front of the group behind Yojimbo, said. "Come on, Yojimbo's getting ahead." Leo had been mostly silent for most of the journey to Rivendell, which was understandable as they were being hunted by the Shredder's forces, so silence was essential.

Later when it was night, the group settled down on a small island in the marshes, with the Turtles sitting on the island as Yojimbo went off hunting for their dinner as the Turtles made the camp. Soon enough, Yojimbo returned to camp with a large deer that he had killed. After skinning deer, the Turtles quickly and rather greedily ate it. Their stomachs full, they put our the fire, setting out their sleeping bags and going to sleep with Yojimbo taking watch.

Leo was later woken up when he heard the sound of humming. He sat up to see the Yojimbo, his back turned to him, was humming a sort melodious tune which turned to him singing softly to himself.

"_Tinúviel elvanui,_

_Elleth alfirin __ethelhael o__ hon ring finnil fuinui,_

_A renc gelebrin thiliol.."_

Though the song was in elvish, Leo understood that he was singing about some sort of elf woman.

"Who is she?" Leo asked, causing the Rabbit Ronin to turn around to face him slightly. "This woman you sing about?"

"She is the Lady of Lúthien. The Elf Maiden who gave her love to Beren... a mortal." He replied turning away from Leo.

"And what happened to her?" Leo asked, curious.

Yojimbo shook his head slightly, "She died." He said simply. He then turned back to Leo, "Get some sleep, Leonardo-san. You will need it."

Nodding, Leo lied back down, quickly falling asleep as Yojimbo stared out at the night sky, giving a small sigh.

"They are only children," He told himself, "I must remain patient."

* * *

_Isengard_

Oroku Saki held his hand hovered over the palantír in his room, his eyes closed as he concentrated.

"The power of Isengard is at your command," Saki said as the eye of the Shredder appeared in the palantír, "Shredder, master of the Earth."

"_Build me an army worthy of Mordor." _The Shredder told him, his voice echoing in Saki's head.

Sitting in his library, Saki pondered on how he could make such a powerful army for the Shredder. As he thought, three Foot soldiers, each wearing black garb and masks with red bananas around their foreheads, each one with a foot emblem on it, approached Saki.

"What orders from Mordor, my lord?" One Foot soldier asked, "What does the Master command?"

Saki's face hardened, "We have work to do." He replied.

* * *

Splinter slowly stirred, feeling his face against a flat stone surface. He struggled to stand up as a cold rain began to come down upon him. He looked around to see that he was on the very rooftop of the temple of Orthanc. As looked down he saw several Foot soldiers were outside with torches as they used several ropes to pull down the trees surrounding Isengard.

Saki walked outside as he observed the Foot soldiers seemingly struggling to bring down the trees.

"The roots are strong, my lord. The roots go deep." One Foot soldier reported, walking up to Saki.

Saki scowled, "Tear them all down." He snarled.

Splinter, not being able to do much off anything, leaned against one of the tall pillars at the top of the roof, trying to take shelter from the freezing rain. All around on the ground, trees were being felled by the Foot soldiers.

* * *

_Weather Hills_

Yojimbo lead the Turtles over several hills in a small valley before Yojimbo spotted a large seemingly old structure at the highest summit.

The structure appeared to be a long abandoned fortress that looked like it had been through many wars as the roof was missing as well as some other parts of the tower.

"This was the great watchtower of Amon Sûl." Yojimbo stated. He then looked back to the Turtles, "We will take shelter there for the night."

The group quickly reached the watchtower, climbing up to a small cliffside just below the fortress itself. The Turtles lay down, panting as Yojimbo gazed out over the plains below. The sun was setting and it was fairly cloudy.

Yojimbo then turned to Turtles and gave them each of them a series of weapons, "These are for you," He told them, handing Leonardo a pair of katanas and Donatello a bo staff, "Keep them close, I will search the perimeter for any dangers," He handed Raphael a pair of sais and Michelangelo a pair of nunchaku, "Remain here." He told them before going down the cliff as the Turtles observed their new weapons with Donnie discovering that his new staff contained a naginata blade while Mikey found his nunchucks contained a kusarigama blade in it.

Later that night, Leo slept peacefully in his sleeping bag. However, his beauty sleep was soon interrupted when he heard the sound of a fire crackling.

"Aw man! My tomato's burst!" He heard Mikey whine.

"Relax, Mikey, you can have mine." He heard Donnie reply calmly.

"Awesome! Hey Raph, want some bacon?" He heard Mikey ask.

"Nah, I'll just have some sausages." He heard Raph answer.

Opening his eyes, Leo sat and turned to see his brothers huddled around a small fire and cooking some food.

Leo's eyes widened in alarm, "What are you doing?!" He questioned, getting his brothers attention as he scrambled to his feet.

"Just having some tomatoes, sausages, and some nice crispy bacon." Donnie replied rather cheerfully as Leo rushed over to them.

"We saved some for you, bro." Raph said, holding out a small plate of food.

But Leo ignored the offering as he was in a state of total panic, "Put it out you idiots!" He cried as he stamped his foot on the fire in a desperate attempt to put it out.

"Well thats just great," Mikey said sarcastically, "Ash on my tomatoes."

Suddenly, a loud familiar screech was heard, causing the Turtles to freeze wide-eyed in fear. Hoping it was nothing, they got up, ran over to the cliff side, and looked down into the valley below. Down below, emerging from a thick layer of fog came five Foot Elite. And they must have seen the fire as they were heading straight for the tower, straight for them.

"Go!" Leo shouted, drawing one of his new katanas as they ran through a small doorway behind them that led to the top of the tower. Getting to the top of the tower, the Turtles drew their new weapons, standing shell-to-shell in a wide circle of pillars. They stood in the center of the platform, frantically looking around as the silence stretched out. No one moved a muscle and stayed in their fighting stances.

Where were they?

Leo had a strange feeling in his heart. A sense of dread as he turned towards a pair of pillars. His blood froze and his pupils dilated when he saw a Foot Elite finally emerge from the darkness. Nobody else saw it yet except for the turtle. The Elite drew out a long jagged black katana and held it up in front of his face as he began walking slowly towards them, his metal boot crunching against the stone floor.

The Turtles turned and stared horrifically as the other four Elite emerged, swords already drawn.

"Back you devils!" Raph shouted, lunging at one Elite and slashing his sais wildly at him. But the Elite blocked and dodged his swings with terrifying ease before kicking Raph into a rock.

"Raph!" Donnie cried as he and Mikey looked in horror. Their looks of horror then turned into ones of anger as they ran towards the Elite with a loud cry, flipping out the blades in their weapons and swinging them relentlessly at them. But once again, the Foot Elite easily dodged and deflected their attacks before swatting them away.

Now only Leo was left.

Swallowing his fear and standing his ground, Leo held his katanas at the ready as one Elite swung his sword at him. Leo blocked the attack and pushed it away before another came in and tried to stab him in the chest. Leo dodged this and swung his katana at the Elite, causing him to back away. But then, two Elite came at him, one knocking Leo's katanas out of his hands with a fast and strong swing and the other diving in sweeping Leo off his feet, causing him to fall down on his shell. Another Elite, who seemed to be the leader, tried to stab Leo as he was on the ground, but Leo managed to scramble back from the attacks before he backed into a rock.

Not knowing what else to do, Leo pulled the Ring out of his pocket. Hearing the whisper of the Ring, the Foot Elite immediately focused their attention on it as they slowly approached the fallen blue clad turtle. Without even thinking, Leo put the Ring on his finger, causing him to disappear from view.

_Waking up in the ghostly world of the Ring, Leo looked in front of him to see that the Foot Elite were still standing before him, and whats worse, they still seemed to see him. But something was different about them as they appeared to look white and __ghostly with skeletal faces, each wearing royal clothes as opposed__ the red robes and thick brown kasa hats he had seen on them before. _

_The Foot Elite in front of him reached out for the Ring with his boney hand as the Ring began to mysteriously glow. As it glowed, Leo felt as if some strange invisible force was pulling his hand towards the Foot Elite. Gritting his teeth, Leo grabbed his wrist with free hand as he struggled against this invisible force, a struggle that he was quickly losing. _

_But at the last possible moment, Leo found the strength he needed, and pulled away with all his might._

_Frustrated by this, the Elite then stabbed Leo right in shoulder with his sword. Leonardo shrieked in agony as he __managed to pull the Ring off his finger,_ coming back into view.

"**Leonardo**!" Raphael cried out as Donatello and Michelangelo gasped in horror. Leonardo lay there, blood flowing out from the wound as he clutched his shoulder, squeezing his eyes shut as tears of pain escaped from them as he ground his teeth together.

Never had he felt pain this unbearable before... and it was slowly killing him.

The Elite was about to stab him again when they heard a loud yell. They turned to see Yojimbo had come back, bearing a katana and a lit torch in hand. Yojimbo waved the torch around, causing the Foot Elite to back away from Leo as his brothers rushed over to him. Swinging and blocking with his katana, the Rabbit Ronin jabbed one Foot Elite with his torch, setting him on fire. The burning Elite screeched as he bumped into another Elite, also setting him on fire. Yojimbo blocked another Elite before kicking him in the chest, causing him to fall off the platform. Sensing the last Elite behind him, Yojimbo turned around threw his torch, nailing the Elite right in the face, causing him to catch on fire. The Elite screeched as he fled the scene. The Rabbit Ronin panted heavily as sheathed his sword.

"Yojimbo!" Raph called out as he, Donnie, and Mikey were huddled around their wounded brother who was moaning in pain. Rushing over to the Turtles, Yojimbo bent down and inspected the wound. "Please, you gotta help." Mikey begged, his voice full of despair.

The Rabbit Ronin then picked up and observed the sword that was used to stab Leo, which had been dropped in the fight. His face turned grim, "He has been stabbed by a Morgue blade." He told them as the blade suddenly turned to ashes, "This is beyond my skill to heal. He needs elvish medicine." He bent down and picked up Leo who was still moaning and groaning in pain as his brothers followed.

Leaving Weathertop, the group rushed through the thick trees and bushes of the woods as Leo's condition seemed to be getting worse. As if things weren't bad enough, they could the faint screeching of the Foot Elite coming behind them.

"Hurry, turtles!" Yojimbo shouted as he carried Leo over his shoulders.

"We're six days away from Rivendell and we're on foot!" Donnie said, panic evident in his voice, "We'll never make it in time!"

As Yojimbo carried him, Leonardo was able to mutter one last thing before passing out again, "Splinter, where are you?"

* * *

_Isengard_

The large fields of grass and tree surrounding Isengard were now gone, replaced with barren rock and deep ravines that led underground. Wooden structures surrounded the ravines the underground was lit with several torches. Inside the ravines, wooden walkways and pulleys had been built where hundreds of Foot Soldiers were working.

Atop the the tower of Orthanc, Splinter was asleep as he leaned against his pillar when a small moth flew over to him. Waking up and catching it quickly and gently in his hand, the Rat Wizard held it close to him, whispering an unknown language to it before letting the moth fly off.

Deep inside the ravines, Oroku Saki came down into the caverns, watching as iron was being smelted and poured into moulds as helmets, weapons, and armor were made around him.

In one corner of the caverns, a small group of Foot Soldiers were trying to pry something from the mud. Through the membranes beneath, a large creature began to tear through the membrane, grabbing one Foot Soldier by throat and choking him. Two other Foot Soldiers were about to interfere when Saki held out his arms, stopping them. The new creature, clearly identified as an orc, a urak-hai for that matter, stood up and crushed the poor Foot Soldier's windpipe, killing him. The Orc then tossed the dead Foot Soldier aside he observed his newly made body.

Saki smiled evilly, he was sure his master would be pleased with his results.

**In case any of you were wondering what Yojimbo's song meant, heres the translation, "_Tinúviel the elven-fair, immortal maiden elven wise, about him cast her night-dark hair, and arms like silver glimmering" _Still, I hope you like this chapter and I will see you all later!**


	12. Flight to Ford

Chapter 12: Flight to the Ford

Leonardo tiredly opened his eyes, immediately feeling the searing pain in his shoulder as his breath came out in ragged gasps, around him were the statues of three monstrous trolls. Turning his head slightly, he saw Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo holding looking over him.

"Look, Leo, it's Bilbo's trolls." Raph said, trying to comfort his brother with some form of nostalgia. Leo of course remembered the trolls from Bilbo's tales, how he and the thirteen dwarves came across three monstrous trolls: Tom, Burt, and William. They had tried to cook them for dinner, but had been saved by Splinter, who distracted the trolls long enough until the sun's first light crept over the top of the trees.

Leo gasped for breath as his eyes turned cloudy, feeling himself fading away. Donnie put a hand on Leo's head and his eyes widened in alarm.

"He's going cold!" Donnie said. "Guys, we're running out of time!"

Yojimbo looked back at them, stress written all over his face. He had his torch out as he had been scanning the forrest for the Foot Elite.

"Is he gonna die?" Mikey asked worriedly, tears springing in his baby blue eyes as he held his torch tightly in his grip.

Yojimbo shook his head, "No, he is passing into the shadow world. Soon he will become a wraith like _them_."

The Turtles paled at the thought of their beloved older brother becoming like the Foot Elite. Yojimbo looked at them and then down at Leo with pity. The young turtle was struggling, and it obvious to the ronin's eye that he was losing the battle and they were still a couple days from Rivendell.

Leo's gasps for breath grew more intense as the oh so familiar screech of the Foot Elite could be heard in the distance.

"Their getting closer!" Donnie said, seriousness with a slight bit of fear in his voice.

Searching through the forests one last time, Yojimbo turned back to the Turtles, "Raphael, do you know the Athelas plant?" He asked.

Raph raised an eye bridge, "Athelas?"

"Kingsfoil." Yojimbo translated.

Raph looked down in thought, he had heard of that plant from somewhere in his days as a gardener, "Kingsfoil? Yeah, thats a weed, right?"

Yojimbo nodded as he handing the red clad turtle a bag, "It may help to slow the poison. Hurry!"

The two immediately went off in separate directions in the forrest as Donnie and Mikey stayed with Leo.

Yojimbo scanned the ground for the weed before finding it in tiny patch. Taking out a knife, he quickly began to cut it. After taking a few of the weeds in his bag, Yojimbo stood up and was about to go back to others when he felt a sword against his throat.

"What's this?" A familiar feminine voice asked with some amusement in her voice, "A Ronin caught off his guard?"

Yojimbo turned his head slightly and was nearly surprised at who he saw.

Meanwhile back with the other turtles, Leo felt like he was dying on the inside as began to loose feeling in his body. However, the turtle found that he could see better in the night as his mind seemed to almost welcome the darkness. He wanted to just give up and let whatever was going to happen to him to happen. Everything that he had encountered since he left the warm comforts of the Shire had gotten him into trouble, all because of that stupid little ring in his pocket.

Just then, a great bright light came to his eyes. It wasn't sunlight, no, he would know sunlight from anywhere. This was different, it was a shimmering white light that seemed to take everything dark out of the turtle's view. And through that light, Leo saw a figure riding a white horse. The figure stopped the horse, dismounting it before approaching him. He looked closer and saw it was some sort of cat woman. Wait, no, it wasn't just a cat woman. He looked to see she had more human like features such as the lack of muzzle and tail, slightly less pointed ears, and long black hair. And on top of that, she looked absolutely beautiful wearing a purple/pinkish kimono top and ink black pants.

The woman knelt beside him and spoke in some sort of elvish, and surprisingly, Leo was able to understand what she was saying!

"_Leonardo," She said, "I am Tomoe Ame. I have come to help you. Hear my voice and come back to the light."_

Raph, Donnie, and Mikey were shocked to see that those words were enough to get Leo to calm down as some bit of color seemed to return to his eyes as he began to breath a lot more slowly, much to their relief.

"Who is she?" Raph asked in wonder.

Donnie examined her less pointy ears and her more human like features, "She's an elf." He answered in quiet astonishment.

Raph and Mikey's eyes went wide in surprise as they were actually looking at a real elf!

Tomoe Ame knelt down to Leo as she inspected his bleeding shoulder, "He's fading," She said as Yojimbo approached with the kingsfoil, chewing it up before carefully putting it on the wound. Leo gasped in pain but Tomoe was able to calm him down as she gently stroked his head.

"He's not going to last. We must get him to my father." She stated.

The Rabbit Ronin nodded, knowing she spoke the truth as the kingsfoil was having little to no effect on the poor turtle. It was enough to slow the poison but not enough to stop it.

"Where are you taking him?" Mikey asked in concern for his big brother.

"I have been searching for you for two days," Tomoe explained to them, seeming to ignore Donnie's question as she and Yojimbo put Leo on her horse, "There are five Foot Elite behind you, where the other four are, I do not know."

"_Stay with the Turtles. I will send horses back for you." _Yojimbo said in elvish, gaining confused looks from Raph, Donnie, and Mikey.

"_I'm the faster rider, I'll take him." _Tomoe responded in elvish before speaking in english. "I do not fear them."

"What do you think their saying?" Raph whispered to Donnie.

Donnie observed the Rabbit Ronin and the Elf Maiden, "I think their speaking in some form of elvish, though I don't think I can understand them."

"_Leonardo is dying," _Tomoe stated, speaking in elvish again, "_If I can get him across the river, the power of my people will protect him."_

"_As you wish." _Yojimbo replied in elvish, gently taking Tomoe Ame's hand and holding it tightly. The Elf Maiden gave him a knowing smile.

After releasing his hand, Tomoe mounted her horse, holding Leo close to her as she grabbed the reins on the horse.

"Ride hard," Yojimbo told her, "And do not look back."

"_Ride fast, __Asfaloth, ride fast." _Tomoe Ame whispered to her horse in elvish.

"Where're you doing?! Those freaks are still out there!" Raph called out as the Tomoe rode off until she vanished from sight. Yojimbo closed his eyes, silently praying that they would be safe. As for the three turtles, they were bewildered that the Yojimbo had allowed the elf to take off like that, and worst of all, alone.

Now all they could do was hope they could make it to Rivendell in time.

* * *

Dawn was breaking as Tomoe Ame rode her horse through the open plains with no intention of stopping. She checked Leo, who was sitting in front of her, she could tell he was getting weaker by the second as he didn't even look conscious at this point. She needed to get him Rivendell and fast.

Suddenly, Tomoe heard sound of galloping of horses in the distance as she rode into the woodlands. She turned her head to see two Foot Elite advancing on her from the right, staring straight at them through the trees.

Immediately she snapped the reins on her horse to make it go faster as she reached a clearing with as six other Foot Elite joined the chase.

Sweat poured down Tomoe Ame's face as she could feel the Foot Elite getting closer.

One of the Foot Elite managed to get close enough as it reached it's hand out to seize Leonardo. "_Ride faster, Asfaloth!" _Tomoe told her horse, seeming to encourage it as her horse began to gallop even faster.

A ninth Elite joined in, nearly chopping Tomoe's arm off. However, the elf managed to take out her katana and parry the attack, causing the ELite to screech in furry.

She into another column of trees, making many twists and turns as she tried to lose them. But the Elite we're not ready to give up so easily as they continued to chase her relentlessly. Riding her horse swiftly down the slope, Tomoe Ame crossed the shallow waters of Bruinen, the river of Rivendell, as the Foot ELite suddenly stopped when they reached the river, seemingly unsure whether they should cross or not.

Tomoe Ame turned and glared at the Foot Elite from the other side of the river as they stared at her.

"Give us the turtle, she-elf." One Foot Elite, supposedly the leader, said with a hiss.

Tomoe simply drew her katana, "If you want him, come and claim him!" She declared with no amount of fear in her voice.

The Elite simply drew their swords in response, but Tomoe Ame made no move to leave.

As the Elite began to cross the river, Tomoe began to mutter something in elvish, "_Nin o Chithaeglir, latso b__eth daer," _As she muttered, the waters of the river seemed to rise, as if some mysterious force was pushing them to do so, "_Rimmo nin Bruinen, dan in Ulair!" _She closed her eyes as she continued, "_Nin o Chithaeglir, latso b__eth daer, __Rimmo nin Bruinen, dan in Ulair!" _She finished her chant as large monstrous wave began to come down form the river, and they were headed straight for the Foot Elite.

The Elite turned their and saw the giant waves. So seeming to panic, the Foot Elite tried desperately to ride back as the wave came crashing down on them like a stampede of wild horses.

Tomoe Ame breathed heavily, she had reached Rivendell, and she no longer had to worry about the ring wraiths.

But before she breath a sigh of relief, Leo began gasping again, this time even worse as he began to foam at the mouth slightly. Tomoe looked down at him and quickly got of her horse, resting him gently on the ground. She bent down and tried shaking the turtle, desperately trying to snap him out of it, but to no avail.

"Leonardo, no!" Tomoe exclaimed in panic, "Don't give in! not now!"

Leonardo didn't seem to hear her as his breaths began to grow more and more shallow.

She then held him close to her as tears began to spring in her eyes, "_What grace has given me_, let him pass" She whispered in elvish, "_Let him be spared_."

As she spoke, Leo heard a voice filled with wisdom whisper, "_Hear my voice and come back to the light."_

That was the last thing Leonardo heard before everything went white.

**There you go! I hate to leave you on such a cliff-hanger, but I felt like it for this chapter. Now I had a hard time trying to pick who would be Arwen, so in the end, I just went with Tomoe Ame cause she seemd to fit the role best in my opinion. In case you guys didn't know, that little chant Tomoe Ame did meant this: "Waters of the Misty Mountains listen to the great word; flow waters of Loudwater against the Ringwraiths!" **

**See you guys next time!**


	13. Rivendell

Chapter 13: Rivendell

Leonardo had no idea how long he had been out, or if he was alive or not. For a moment he couldn't see anything, his vision blurred by a bright light that caused him to squint his eyes.

Where was he? How long had he been unconscious? A series of questions filled his mind, but could not find an answer to any of them.

The last thing he clearly remembered was the excruciating pain he felt when the Foot Elite stabbed him in the shoulder. However now, that pain was gone, replaced by a wave calmness and soothing.

As the bright light dimmed down and his vision began to clear, he could see he was in a very large and comfortable bed in a room of strange but beautiful design as the sun was shinning into the room past a couple curtains. As he sat up, he could hear the sound of birds chirping and the faint sound of running water.

"Where am I?" Leo questioned, his mind still in confusion.

"You are in the House of Bishop," A sudden but familiar voice said from right beside him, "And it is eight o'clock in the morning on October the twenty fourth."

Leo's eyes widened, he knew that voice all too well as he turned his head to right side of the bed.

"Splinter?!"

Sitting in a chair next to the bed, the Rat wizard chuckled a bit at the young turtles shock, "Yes, I am here." He replied.

Leonardo couldn't believe it! He was back! Splinter was back!

Sitting up from his bed, Leo embraced Splinter who gladly returned it.

"You are lucky to be here as well," Splinter told him, releasing him from his embrace, "A few more hours and you would have been beyond our aid."

Leo sat back, placing a hand on his chest, "Would I have..?" He paused for moment.

"You would have become like _them_," Splinter confirmed, knowing what Leo was thinking, "One of the ring wraiths," He then smiled as he placed a hand on Leo's shoulder, "But you have great strength in you, young turtle." Leo smiled at that.

But his smile quickly faded as he put a hand on his left shoulder where he had been stabbed, which now had a thin scar on it, "What happened, Splinter?"

Splinter looked at him quizzically, not sure what he meant.

"Why didn't you meet us at The Prancing Pony? Where were you?" Leo clarified.

Splinter's face turned serious, knowing he deserved an explanation, "My apologies, Leonardo," He said, "I was.. delayed."

* * *

_A few days earlier..._

_Splinter was slammed headfirst against one of Orthanc's pillars. Once again Oroku Saki had returned, staff in hand, asking again if he would join him in his task to rebuild Middle-Earth through the eyes of the Shredder._

_Splinter, however, would not be easily tempted by evil. He knew it was pointless now to try and reason with him. Whatever was left of the friend he once knew was gone. Replaced by a cold calculating servant of darkness._

_"The friendship of the Shredder is not lightly cast aside," Saki snarled, using his staff to throw Splinter across the top of the tower, leaving him hanging in mid air over the edge of the roof. "One ill turn deserves another," Saki continued, walking slowly over to Splinter, glaring ever so slightly at each other, "It is over."_

_But just then, Splinter noticed the same moth he had spoken to earlier fly over him. His message had been __received!_

_"Embrace the power of the Ring," Saki told him, "Or embrace your own destruction."_

_With a gesture of his staff, Splinter was __roughy thrown back onto the roof. The Rat Wizard gave a quiet groan in pain as he felt the blood dripping a bit from his forehead._

_"There is only one Lord of the Ring," Splinter replied as slowly pushed himself up, his gaze falling upon Saki, "Only one who can bend it to his will," As he looked up, he saw a giant elephant size eagle swooping in silently from above, "And he does not share power." And with those words, summoning all the strength he could muster, Splinter jumped off the rooftop of Orthanc. _

_Saki's eyes went wide in surprise as he rushed over to the edge. Had his former friend lost his mind?! Had he really just jumped to his doom? He peered over the edge just in time to see a great eagle swoop in and catch Splinter, carrying him away from Isengard._

_"So you have chosen death." Saki muttered with a scowl, even though he knew Splinter was far from ear-shot._

_By the time dawn rose in the land, Splinter was already flying over the mountains of Caradhras. Luckily Rivendell wasn't very far from where he was flying. He needed to inform Lord Bishop of all that had transpired._

_As he flew, he prayed that Leonardo and his brothers were alright. He prayed that Yojimbo had found them and took them to Rivendell._

* * *

_Present day..._

When Leo had heard Splinter say he had been delayed, he wondered how. How could he have been delayed for so long? His confusion and curiosity were further amped as the Rat Wizard appeared to be in deep thought.

"Splinter? What is it?" Leo asked, concerned.

Splinter blinked, snapping back to reality as he shook his head slightly, "It is nothing, Leonardo." He replied simply with a small smile, though it seemed pretty unconvincing.

"Leo!" Upon hearing a familiar voice from the door, Leo turned just in time to Raphael run up to him and pull him into a rough but loving hug. Leo laughed a bit, returning the hug almost immediately with equal strength.

"I thought we lost you for a second." Raph said, releasing Leo from his embrace, his emerald eyes nearly filled with unshed tears of joy.

Leo smiled, "It's good to see you too, Raph." His face then twisted into one of concern, "What about Donnie and Mikey and Yojimbo? Are they.."

"Don't worry, their alright." Raph told him reassuringly, "They'll be glad your okay."

"Raphael hardly left your side during your stay." Splinter told Leo, gesturing to Raph.

Raph rolled his eyes and waved him off, "Ah, it was nothing." He said casually as he sat on the bed.

But Leo knew that wasn't the case. And he couldn't restrain the burst of pride for his younger brother; he'd stayed by his side, loosing sleep all for him.

"By the skills of Lord Bishop," Splinter began, turning to see Lord Bishop himself entered the room, "You are beginning to mend."

As Lord Bishop approached them, Leo managed to get a good look at him; he was a tall cat human being like Tomoe Ame only more man like. He had short and flat black hair with nearly twinkling ink black eyes, and wore white robes with a black cloak.

"Welcome to Rivendell, Leonardo." Bishop greeted warmly, his voice filled with calmness and wisdom.

* * *

Later on, Leo and Raph walked outside the room, Leo was absolutely stunned at what he saw.

He found himself in a beautiful city sitting deep within a valley. Waterfalls both big and small could be seen from almost all sides, and there was even a clear stream below the city.

As they walked through a large courtyard, Leo looked around to see Donatello and Michelangelo run towards them with big smiles.

"Leo!" Mikey exclaimed, running up and hugging his big brother, "Your okay!"

Leo smiled and patted Mikey lightly on the head.

"You gave us quite the scare, bro." Donnie told him, "Hows your shoulder?" He asked in concern, putting a hand gently on the scar.

"It's doing better." Leo replied, though he winced a little bit.

"That's quite good. I'm sure you will feel better in few days." A familiar voice said, causing the Turtles to turn their heads. What they caused their eyes to go wide in surprise.

Sitting on a bench not far from them was Bilbo himself! His book in his lap, his dark green scales with slightly more wrinkles, and his old reddish brown bandana around his eyes, and a wooden cane at his side.

The Turtles stared at Bilbo in shock before large grins came upon their faces as they ran towards their aged uncle.

"Bilbo!" The Turtles cried as they all embraced Bilbo tightly.

Bilbo laughed merrily as he wrapped his arms around his boys.

"Hello, my dear lads," Bilbo said happily, "Ugh, please, my spine."

* * *

"_There and Back Again by Bilbo Hamato."_ Leo read as he and his brothers flipped through the pages of Bilbo's book.

"This looks great so far." Donnie said as he and his brothers smiled proudly at their uncle.

"I meant to go back. Wander the paths of Mirkwood, visit Lake Town, see the Lonely Mountain of Erebor once again," Bilbo explained as he sat next to his adoptive nephews on the bench beside them in a small passage, "But age as it seems has finally caught up with me."

Leo turned another page in the book to see the next page was a map of the Shire. The Turtles smiled in nostalgia as they looked over the map.

"Man, I miss the Shire." Mikey said softly.

"So do I, little brother." Raph added, patting Mikey gently on the shoulder.

"Remember when we used to go into the woods, going off on some crazy adventure?" Donnie asked, "Who would have thought we'd be going on a real adventure someday?"

"Our own adventure turned out to be quite different." Leo said. He then turned to Bilbo with a slightly solemn look, "We're not like you, Bilbo."

Bilbo simply gave a small smile, "My dear Leonardo, that's what makes you and your brothers so special."

The Turtles smiled as they once again hugged Bilbo, happy to be reunited with their beloved uncle.

* * *

Leo was walking through Rivendell, the sunlight shining on him as he walked into the courtyard when he noticed his brothers packing their bags on a bench by a balcony.

Slightly confused, he walked up to them, "Your packing already?" Leo asked them.

Turning towards him, Donnie just shrugged, "No harm in being prepared."

"I thought you guys wanted to see the elves." Leo said as he walked up to them.

"We did get to see them," Mikey said, zipping up his backpack, "We got to meet 'em first hand."

"It's just," Raph added, pausing a moment before walking up to Leo with a sincere look on his face, "We did what Splinter wanted, didn't we? We got the Ring to Rivendell and we thought... seeing how your feeling better, we'd be going soon... back home."

Leo was silent for a few moments, "Your right, guys," He admitted, taking the Ring, which was still in his belt pocket, out, "We did what we set out to do. The Ring will be safe in Rivendell." He then smiled at his brothers, "I'm ready to go home."

The brothers smiled at each other before going back to packing their bags.

Their quest had been fulfilled. They had made it to Rivendell. They could finally go home.

Or so they thought.


	14. The Fate of the Ring

Chapter 14: The Fate of the Ring

"His strength returns." Bishop commented, referring to Leonardo as he and Splinter observed the Turtles on a balcony from above them.

"That wound will never fully heal," Splinter stated, solemnly, "He will carry it for the rest of his life."

"And yet to come so far, still bearing the Ring, the turtle has shown extraordinary resilience to it's evil." Bishop replied, walking over to the table in his study as he poured himself a glass of wine.

Splinter frowned sadly as he shook his head, "It is a burden that he never should have had to bear," he said, walking over to Bishop, "We can ask no more of Leonardo."

Bishop turned to the Rat Wizard, a serious and stern look on his face, "Splinter the enemy is moving. The Shredder's forces are massing in the east, his eye is fixed on Rivendell. And Oroku Saki, you tell me, has betrayed us." Splinter looked down at that, "Our list of allies grows thin."

"His treachery runs deeper than you know," Splinter explained, "By foul craft, Saki has crossed Orcs with Goblin men. He is breeding an army in the caverns of Isengard. An army that can move in the sunlight and cover great distance with speed. Shredder is coming for the Ring."

Bishop looked horrified at that explanation as he and Splinter stood only inches from each other, "This is an evil that cannot be concealed by the elves. We do not have the strength to fight _both _Mordor and Isengard!"

Splinter had hoped that they could hide the Ring in Rivendell, but that was no longer an option. Bishop made a good point, they could not fight off both the armies of orcs and foot soldiers, even if he didn't want to accept that.

"Splinter," Bishop said regretfully, "The Ring cannot stay here."

Though slightly saddened by this, Splinter merely nodded in understanding. Before they could continue in their conversion, they heard the sound of horse galloping.

They walked over to the balcony to see a tall dark grey furred anthropomorphic wolf come through an entrance to Rivendell riding his horse. He wore a fancy red robe and dark blue pants with a brown belt that held his sword coupled with a large wooden shield strapped to his back.

From another entrance came a party of elves, the lead elf wearing mostly red samurai armor without a helmet and a bow with a quiver of arrows strapped to his back. He had short black hair and a more youthful appearance, looking like he was at least nineteen.

Finally, the last party to enter Rivendell was a group of dwarves. They were short, pug-dog like creatures, the lead one wearing black and grey robes with a white helmet on his head. He small freckles on his cheeks, light brown fur, and three missing top teeth (which were probably lost in a previous battle).

"This peril belongs to all of Middle-Earth. They must decide now how to end it." Bishop said, watching through the window of his study before turning back to Splinter, "The time of the elves is over, my people are leaving for the shores for the Grey Havens. Who will you look to when we are gone? The dwarves? They hide within their mountains, seeking riches. They care nothing for the troubles of others."

"It is in mortals that we must place our hope." Splinter stated, a look of utter seriousness on his face.

Bishop's expression seemed to darken as he turned away, "Mortals?" He scoffed slightly, "Mortals are weak." He then walked into a large courtroom as he was followed by Splinter.

"Their race is failing," Bishop continued, "The blood of Númenor is all but spent, it's pride and dignity forgotten. It is _because _of mortals that the Ring survived." He then stopped in the middle of the room, "I was there, Splinter," He stated, not even turning around to face him, "I was there three thousand years ago.."

* * *

_3,000 years ago_

_This was it, the final battle that would decide the fate of Middle-Earth, in the land of Mordor itself._

_As the armies of Middle-Earth and Mordor clashed in the heat of battle, Bishop, who was covered in dirt and blood of both foot soldiers and orcs swung his sword, killing an orc as he panted heavily. He was getting tired from the nonstop fighting which looked like it wasn't going to end any time soon._

_He looked to see Musashi on the ground next to his dead father, the Shredder ominously approaching him. __Desperate, Musashi grabbed his father's katana which lay next to him, only for Shredder to stomp hard on the blade, snapping it like a twig, much to Musashi's horror._

_The Shredder then extended and raised his clawed gauntlets, ready to end the son of the emperor._

_But as he brought his claws down, Musahsi, out of pure instinct, swung the broken sword, cutting the Shredder's fingers off along with the Ring._

_The Shredder let out an inhuman roar of pain as he clutched his hand. But before he could do anything, a bright light erupted from his chest, glowing brighter and brighter until he exploded in a blinding flash of light, creating a huge shockwave that swept the armies of light off their feet and killing the armies of Mordor._

"I was there was there three thousand years ago when Musashi took the Ring,"

_As the Shredder's helmet hit the ground, Musashi then noticed the Shredder's severed finger, which still had the Ring on it._

_Seemingly drawn to it, he picked it up as the finger began to crumble to ashes leaving only the Ring in his palm._

"I was there when the strength of mortals failed,"

_Bishop quickly got to his feet, rushing over to Musashi as he continued to inspect the Ring._

_"Hurry, Musash!," Bishop told the young rabbit emperor, knowing that the Shredder was now vulnerable without the Ring, and that this was there one chance to end his evil once and for all, "Follow me!"_

"I led Musashi into the fires of Mount Doom, the one place the Ring could be destroyed."

_Bishop and Musashi were able to climb up to the entrance to Mount Doom as they entered the chamber where the Ring was forged._

_In the chamber was a cliff edge that hung over a massive pool of burning hot lava._

_"Quickly," Bishop told Musashi, turning back to him, "Cast it into the fire!"_

_But Musashi's gaze remained fixed on the Ring, almost as if he was in some sort of trance as he rolled the Ring in his fingers._

_"Destroy it!" Bishop shouted as he began to get a sinking feeling in his stomach._

_But Musashi did nothing of the sort. Instead he simply stood there, gazing at the Ring. He then looked up as a sly smirk came on his face._

_"No." He said, his voice barely above a whisper. With that, he turned around and walked back towards the entrance of the chamber with the Ring in hand._

_"Musashi!" Bishop called out to him in desperation._

"It should have ended that day, but evil was allowed to endure,"

* * *

_Present day..._

Splinter simply stayed silent, taking in all of this information as Bishop turned to him.

"Musashi kept the Ring and the line of Emperors was broken," Bishop stated, "There is no strength left in the world of mortals. They are scattered, divided, and leaderless."

"There is one who could untie them." Splinter said, "One who reclaim the throne of Gondor."

Bishop frowned, knowing who he was talking about, "He turned from that path a long time ago. He has chosen exile over his destiny."

* * *

Yojimbo read a small book, leaning against the railing as the moonlight shined down upon him, illuminating his surroundings.

Next to him on the right a was statue of a hooded woman holding pedestal which had an old katana with a mostly shattered blade placed on it. Across from him was a beautiful painting depicting Musashi cutting the Ring from the Shredder's finger with his broken sword.

Just then Yojimbo heard footsteps coming from down the hallway. He looked up from his book to see the humanoid grey wolf from earlier walk up to painting without even noticing him.

The wolf stood there for several seconds admiring the painting before he finally turned around and noticed Yojimbo.

"Your no elf." The wolf said quizzically.

"People of the South are welcome here." Yojimbo replied politely.

"Who are you?" The wolf questioned, curious while also slightly suspicious.

"I'm a friend of Splinter the Grey." Yojimbo said simply.

The wolf nodded in understanding, "Well, it seems we have a common cause," He paused for a moment, "Friend."

Yojimbo nodded before going back to reading his book.

The wolf then noticed the pedestal with the broken katana on it. His curiosity growing, he slowly walked over to the pedestal.

"The Shards of Narsil," The wolf stated, gently picking up the broken sword, "The blade that cut the Ring from the Shredder's hand." He gently ran his finger across the blade before coming to the tip and accidentally cutting himself, drawing a bit of blood from his finger, causing the wolf to wince, "Still sharp." The wolf said before placing the broken katana back on the edge of the pedestal and walking off.

As the wolf disappeared from view, the hilt of the katana slid of the pedestal, landing on the floor with a slight clang.

Seeing this, Yojimbo stood up from his chair and walked over, picking up and observing the broken katana before gently putting it back on the pedestal.

"Why do you fear the past?" A gentle feminine voice asked.

Yojimbo didn't need to turn around to know who it was.

"You are Musashi's heir," Tomoe Ame told him, "Not Musashi himself. You are not bound to his fate."

"The same blood flows through my veins," Yojimbo said almost in shame as he turned towards her, "The same weakness."

"Your time will come," Tomoe said, walking up to him, "You will face the same and you will defeat it."

"_The shadow does not hold sway yet, Usagi." _She said in elvish, "_Not over you or me."_

* * *

Yojimbo and and Tomoe Ame walked down towards a nearby stream, standing on a small bridge as they held hands and stared into each others eyes.

"_Do you __remember when we first met?" _Tomoe asked in elvish_._

Yojimbo nodded, "_I thought I had strayed into a dream." _he replied in elvish.

"_Long years have passed," _Tomoe said, raising a hand and gently stroking Yojimbo's cheek. "_You did not have the cares you carry now."_

She then paused for a moment as she lowered her hand, "_Do you __remember what I told you?" _She asked.

Yojimbo was silent as he reached down and stroked the star shaped necklace on her neck.

"You told me you would bind yourself to me," He sighed in English, "Forsaking the immortal life of your people."

"And to that I hold," Tomoe replied softly in English with a small smile, taking Yojimbo's hand "I would rather share one lifetime with you than face all the ages of this world alone."

She then removed the necklace from her neck, placing it in his hand, much to the Rabbit Ronin's surprise.

"I choose a mortal life." She whispered.

Yojimbo looked up at her and shook his head, "You cannot give me this."

"It is mine to give to whom I will," Tomoe replied simply, closing his hand as she moved her face closer to his, "Like my heart."

At that moment, Yojimbo and Tomoe Ame's lips met in a long passionate kiss.


	15. The Council of Bishop

Chapter 15: The Council of Bishop

The following morning the council had fully gathered.

When Leonardo entered the Council chambers with Splinter, he surprised by how many there were. At first, it seemed like the delegates were very few when they arrived in Rivendell. But judging by all the filled seats in the though, that was obviously not the case.

As he sat down, he noticed the dwarves were glaring at the elves with much contempt. Leo of course knew that dwarves had a heated grudge against the elves, as he had heard from Bilbo's tales, he had however never fully understood why they hated them the most.

Leo and Splinter both sat down with the rest of the council in a large circle with a small table in the center of it.

"Strangers from distant lands, friends of old, you have been summoned here to answer the great threat of Mordor," Bishop said aloud, acknowledging all who were present, "Middle-Earth stands upon the brink of destruction. None can escape it. You will unite or you will fail. Each race is bound to this fate, this _one_ doom."

He then glanced towards Leo, "Bring forth the Ring, Leonardo." Bishop told him calmly, gesturing his hand towards the round table.

Leo stood up from his chair, walking cautiously over to the table before he hesitantly reaching into his pocket and placing the Ring on the table.

Loud gasps and mumbles could be heard from the council as the turtle sat back down in his chair next to Splinter.

"So it is true." A middle aged wolf muttered in awe, putting a finger near his mouth. Yojimbo, who was sitting a few chairs away from the wolf, heard this. His gaze shifted uncomfortably to the wolf with slight suspicion.

The rest of the council also seemed uneasy as their eyes remained transfixed on the Ring. They all had the sudden slight desire to examine the Ring closer, such was the case with the wolf as he stood up from his chair.

"In a dream," The wolf began, slowly walking towards the table, "I saw the Eastern sky go dark. In the West, a pale light lingered. A voice crying, 'Your doom is near at hand. Musashi's bane is found.'" He then began to slowly reach for the Ring, "Musashi's bane." He muttered.

Bishop stood up, "Bradford!"

"_Ash nazg durbatulûk," _Splinter chanted in black speech, not even standing up from his chair as the sky itself seemed to go dark, startling everyone present and causing the wolf, known as Bradford, to stumble back, "_Ash nazg gimbatul, ash nazg __thrakatulûk, ash nazg _krimpatul." As Bradford backed away from the table and collapsed into his seat, Splinter immediately stopped chanting as light quickly returned to the sky, leaving everyone both shocked and horrified at what just happened as everything seemed to calm down.

Bishop looked towards the Rat Wizard slightly harshly, "Never has anyone dared to speak words of that tongue her in Imlardis." He told Splinter, both horrified and angered.

I do not ask for your pardon, Lord Bishop," Splinter huffed, "For the black speech of Mordor may yet be heard in every corner of the west," He then glared at the Ring, "The Ring itself is altogether evil!"

Bradford however, did not look convinced, "But it is a gift," He said, standing back up again, "A gift to the foes of Mordor! Why not use this Ring?" He then began to pace around the council, "My father, the steward of Gondor, has long kept the forces of Mordor at bay. By the blood of our people are your lands kept safe." he said pridefully, "Give Gondor the weapon of the enemy, let us use it against him."

At that moment, Yojimbo finally spoke up, "You cannot wild it. None of us can." He stated sharply as Bradford turned towards him, "It answers to the Shredder and him alone. It has no other master."

Bradford scoffed, "And what would a mere ronin know of this matter?" He questioned.

One of the elves, a young looking one in particular, stood up from his seat, glaring slightly at the Gondorion Wolf, "This is no mere ronin," The he said, "This is Usagi, son of Onagi. You owe him your allegiance."

Leo raised an eye ridge. They knew Yojimbo's real name?

Bradford's eyes widened, "Usagi? This is Musashi's heir?"

"And heir to the throne of Gondor." The young elf added.

Leo's eyes went wide as he stared at Rabbit Ronin in bewilderment. This whole trip, he and his brothers had been in the presence of royalty?! How could that be?! Leo never expected that Yojimbo (err, Usagi) was actually an heir to the throne. He didn't exactly look like the kingly type to him.

"_Sit down, Keno." _Usagi told the elf calmly in elvish, raising his hand slightly.

Bradford turned back towards Keno before scowling, "Gondor has no king," He scoffed before glaring at Usagi disdainfully, "Gondor needs no king." He then sat back down.

"Usagi is right," Splinter said aloud, returning to the original topic, "We cannot use it."

"Then there is but one choice," Bishop stated, standing up his chair, "The Ring _must_ be destroyed."

Everyone in the council seemed to be in agreement, all except Bradford, who placed a hand on his forehead in slight disappointment. This left Leo wondering why Bradford was so desperate to take the Ring to his city, Usagi already explained that Ring only answers to the Shredder.

Leo of course couldn't deny that the Ring made quite a habit of ensnaring people to it. However, he couldn't really tell if Bradford was already completely obsessed with it, but he could see much temptation in the wolf.

Just then, a young dwarf stood up, grabbing his axe, "Well what are we waiting for, yo? Let's smash this thing!" The dwarf said.

Before anyone knew what was happening, the dwarf rushed up to the table and swung his axe down on the Ring. But to everyone's shock, as soon as the dwarf's blade his the Ring, the axe exploded into pieces, creating a small shock wave that flung the young dwarf back. Leo winced a bit as he held his head, having a flashing glimpse of the Shredder himself. Splinter seemed to notice this as he laid a hand on his shoulder in concern.

As the dust cleared, everyone looked in shock and surprise to see that the table had several cracks and looked like it was ready to crumble, but the Ring was still intact with not even a scratch on it.

"The Ring cannot be destroyed, Casey Jones, by any craft that we may posses." Bishop told the young dwarf as Casey sat up, dumbfounded at what just happened, "The Ring was made in the fires of Mount Doom. Only there can it be destroyed. It must be taken into Mordor and cast back into the fiery chasm from whence it came," He then looked around to all the delegates, "One of you must do this." He said, speaking directly to everyone present.

Once he said those words, the whole Council fell silent. Finally Bradford spoke up, "One doesn't simply waltz into Mordor," He stated hopelessly, "It's black gates are guarded by legions of orcs, foot soldiers, and worse. There is evil that doesn't sleep," He then made a circle with his hand, "And the _Great Eye _is always watching. It is a barren wasteland, riddled with fire, ash and dust. The very air itself there is poisonous. Not with ten thousand men could you do this. It is folly."

Most of the council found themselves agreeing with the Gondorion Wolf. If what he said was true, then this quest was definitely suicide.

Keno then stood up and looked at Bradford furiously, "Didn't you hear what Lord Bishop just said?! The Ring must be destroyed!"

"And your supposed to be the one to do it?" Casey questioned harshly, butting into the conversation and shooting a filthy glare at the elf.

"And if we fail, what then?!" Bradford demanded, standing up with the dwarf, "What happens when Shredder takes back what is rightfully his?!"

"Over my dead body will I see the Ring trusted to an elf!" Casey stated, causing the other elves to shoot to their feet shouting angrily at Casey as the other dwarves came to his defense, "Never trust an elf, yo!" He stated.

From that point on, chaos erupted. Everybody, even Splinter, began engaging in heated shouting matches, arguing what should be done with the Ring as the only ones still seated were Leonardo and Usagi.

As Leo stared at the Ring, which was still on the table, he could once again hear the Ring whispering to him in it's foul language as all the sounds around him seemed to drown out again as a realization dawned upon him. Knowing what he had to do, Leo clenched his fists and stood up.

"I will take it!" He shouted.

No one seemed to hear him as they continued to bicker and argue.

"I will take it!" Leo repeated, yelling louder.

This time, everybody heard him, and the room fell silent once again. The delegates looked surprised by the young turtle's declaration, pondering if he was either foolish or brave. Their expressions seemed to soften as they realized that this turtle was willing to sacrifice _everything_ to save the world.

"I will take the Ring to Mordor." Leo said. He then faltered slightly as everyone stared at him before he regained his composure, "Though I don't know the way."

Splinter then walked up to him, lightly patting him on the shoulder as he nodded, "I will help you bare this burden, Leonardo, as long as it is yours to bare."

Usagi stood up from his chair and walked up to Leo before he knelt down to his level, "If by life or death I can protect you, I will," He then stood up again and drew his katana, "You have my sword."

Keno was next to walk up, "And you have my bow." He said, holding it out.

"And my axe." Casey chimed in, raising his axe.

Finally, Bradford was the last to walk up, "You carry the fate of many, young turtle," He remarked, "If this is indeed the will of the council, then Gondor will see it done."

"Hey!" Everybody was startled by sudden yell coming from the bushes and were bewildered to see Raphael, Donatello, and Michelangelo rush into the chamber right next to Leo.

"Leo's not going anywhere without us!" He said, crossing his arms confidently.

Bishop gave him an amused smile, "No indeed," he agreed, "For it is highly impossible to separate the four of you, even when he is summoned to a secret council and you were not."

"You'll have to send us all tied up in sacks to stop us!" Donnie added.

"You'll need smart people for this kind of mission... quest... thing." Mikey also added.

A couple people gave each other a few awkward glances.

"Well I guess that rules you out, Mikey." Donnie muttered.

Bishop looked at all the volunteers, "Nine companions," he mused. He then nodded slightly, "You shall be The Fellowship of the Ring."

The group smiled, proud of their new title.

"Awesome!" Mikey exclaimed excitedly, "Where are we going again?"

Raph smacked him upside the head.


	16. The Departure of the Fellowship

Chapter 16: The Departure of the Fellowship

_Rivendell Gardens_

As the others were packing for their journey, Usagi walked down to a certain part of the gardens Rivendell.

There he found an old statue covered in fallen leaves and branches that sat over a tombstone. Brushing them aside, the statue was of beautiful female rabbit. On the tombstone was part of a message written in elvish.

_'I gave hope to the Dúnedain,' _They read when translated into English, '_I have kept no hope for myself'_

Brushing his hand on the tombstone, Usagi felt a sense of longing and sorrow as he knelt down to the grave.

_"She wanted to protect her child," _Bishop said in elvish, "_She thought that in Rivendell you would be safe."_

Usagi then traced his hand gently on the cheek of the statue of his mother as Bishop approached him, "In her heart she knew you would be hunted you whole life, but you would never escape your fate." Bishop said in English, "The skill of the elves can reforge the Sword of Emperors, but only you have the power wield it."

Usagi looked up at Bishop, "I do not want this power," He replied, standing up, "I never wanted that power."

"You are the last of your bloodline," Bishop stated with utter seriousness, "There is no other."

* * *

_Bilbo's Hut_

Inside Bilbo's hut that the elves gave him, Bilbo was helping Leonardo pack up for his journey. With Leo wearing a brown button up vest over a beige button up henley.

"My old sword, Sting," Bilbo said, taking out a single katana and handing it to Leo, "Here, take it, take it."

Leo took the sword, taking it out of it's sheath and admiring it with wonder.

"It's so light." Leo commented as he waved the sword slightly.

"It was made by the elves, after all," Bilbo added, "The blade glows blue when orcs are close. And its times like that my lad, when you have to be extra careful." He then reached into the chest next to his bed, pulling out what looked like an elegant chain mail, "This is Mithril, as light as a feather and as hard as dragon scales." He then handed it to Leo, "Let me see you put it on."

Leo nodded and began to unbutton his vest, revealing the Ring which was now on a small chain necklace around his neck.

Upon seeing it again, Bilbo felt his breath being caught in his throat as he stared at the Ring, causing Leo to tense slightly.

"My.. my old ring." Bilbo stammered slightly and smiling nervously as Leo was becoming more nervous, "Well I would... very much like to hold it again, one last time."

Leo, sensing that Bilbo was being tempted by the Ring, began to slowly button up his shirt. But as he did, Bilbo suddenly lunged for the Ring, letting out a startling snarl causing Leo to jump back with a shocked yelp. To Leo's horror, Bilbo didn't look like the kind turtle he and his brothers had grown up with. He looked like a twisted and terrifying creature.

But then he stopped. After a brief second, that horrifying sight vanished and Leo just saw the same old Bilbo again. The old turtle stumbled back, clutching his head, seeming to instantly regret what he had tried to do. Leo had no idea what he had just seen, but he had a feeling that it was related to the Ring.

"I-I'm sorry I brought this upon you, my boy," Bilbo apologized shakily as he stumbled back and sat down on the bed, "I'm sorry that you must carry this burden," His voice cracking as tears began to well up in his eyes, "I'm sorry for everything." With that, Bilbo slumped down and began to sob, burying face in his hands.

A wash of sympathy coming over him, Leo walked towards the bed and held Bilbo tightly loving embrace which Bilbo returned with equel force as he sobbed into his nephew's shoulder while Leo did his best to comfort him.

"You don't have to apologize, Uncle," Leo said softly as he gently stroked Bilbo's shell, "If it means you don't have to suffer, I'll gladly carry the burden."

Smiling lightly under his tears, Bilbo patted Leo on the shell, "That's my boy."

* * *

_Rivendell Entrance_

The next morning, all the members of the fellowship had finally gathered together at the entrance to Rivendell. And with them came the whole town of Rivendell to see them off with Bishop standing in front of them. It was finally time to set out on their quest.

"The ring bearer is setting out on a quest to Mount Doom," Bishop announced as he gazed upon each member of the Fellowship, "And you who travel with him, no oath or bond is laid to go further than you will."

The Turtles each raised an eye ridge. Go further than they will? What was that supposed to mean? This was supposed to be a commitment. Shouldn't they all be required to fulfill this quest to very end? But then again, they were taking a big risk to destroy this ring, and they had to take it.

Bishop then finally nodded to everyone, "Farewell. Hold to your purpose. And may the blessing of the elves, mortals, and all free folk be with you."

Splinter, who was at the head of the group, looked over to Leo, "The Fellowship awaits the ring bearer."

All eyes turned towards the blue clad turtle. Leo looked at them and slowly walked towards the front of the group. Splinter smiled kindly at his young friend and went behind him, followed by the rest of the Fellowship.

"Mordor, Splinter, is it left or right?" Leo suddenly whispered to Splinter.

The Rat Wizard stifled a chuckle, "Left." He replied.

One by one, the company left the gates of Rivendell and out into the world beyond. Usagi was the last to exit. However, before he did so, he shot one last look at Tomoe Ame and nodded reassuringly with a smile. The Elf returned said nod and forced a smile.

With that, the Rabbit Ronin then turned to follow his companions out into the wild.

Thus the journey to Mordor had begun. And there was no turning back now.

**Holly ****Molly! I'm sorry if this chapter was short, but I'm heading to Hawaii tomorrow with my Mom and Dad. So I won't be updating for about a week. So see ya next time!**


	17. The Pass of Caradhas

Chapter 17: The Pass of Caradhas

_Outskirts of Rivendell_

As the Fellowship slowly climbed out of the hidden valley, Leonardo looked back at Rivendell one last time. The city was almost like a shimmering crown sitting on a hilltop from where he was standing. He know understood why Bilbo wanted to live out the rest of his days there. If he had a choice, he'd stay there forever. But being the ring bearer, he had a huge responsibility. And so he pressed on with the Fellowship.

The rest of the Fellowship didn't wish to leave Rivendell either, but the destruction of the Ring was their number one priority right now.

Eventually, Splinter took the lead of the company, considering that he knew these lands better than any of them. Usagi and Keno followed right behind the Rat Wizard, being the second best to know the land as the Turtles, Casey, and Bradford all hung in the back.

The Fellowship walked on for a good couple of hours, some admiring the scenery around them, specifically the Turtles. These lands were far more bigger than the Shire and the land surrounding the village of Bree.

"We must hold this course West of the Misty Mountains for forty days," Splinter told them, glancing back so they could hear him, "If our luck holds, the Gap of Rohan will still be open to us. From there, our road turns East to Mordor."

"Forty days?!" Michelangelo cried, "Aww man!" Raphael smacked him upside the head.

* * *

The company had been traveling for a good couple of days, making good progress. By that time, they had been traveling closer and closer to the mountains. As it was getting close to noon, Splinter allowed the others to have a brief rest to gather their strength.

Raph had prepared a fire and began to cook some meat and stew for the hungry travelers as most of the Fellowship kept mostly to themselves.

Surprisingly, Donnie and Mikey were nowhere near tired, so Bradford decided he would teach the two turtles how to properly fight with their weapons.

Raph soon finished preparing the food and began hand it out to the rest of the starving Fellowship. After giving Leo a small plate of food, he sat down next to him while eating his own food as he, Leo, and Usagi watched Donnie and Mikey were dodging and blocking Bradford's soft blows.

Donnie grunted as he blocked a few swings from Bradford's sword with his staff, to which he had become quite accustomed to it, "Your doing good." Bradford complimented, nodding at them pleasing. He swung his sword again but this time towards Mikey, who parried it with his nunchaku.

"Watch your footing." Usagi advised, smoking his pipe.

Bradford swung again, this time a little harder, but Donnie and Mikey seemed to be getting the hang of it.

"If anyone's asking for my opinion, which I know their not, I'd say were taking the long way around yo!" Casey stated, a small gleam of excitement in his eyes, "I know a shortcut through the Mines of Moria. My cousin Balin would give us a royal welcome."

However, Splinter's face seemed to go slightly pale for a second, "No, Casey." Splinter replied sternly, "I would not go through there unless I had no other choice."

Casey simply looked down and sighed in disappointment. Though he knew better than to argue with the Rat Wizard, he also had to question why he seemed so afraid of going there.

Keno suddenly turned his head south, as if he had heard something that was most disturbing. His eyes narrowed and he rushed over to the edge of one of the large rocks. Curious, Splinter followed his gaze, searching the sky for whatever Keno was seeing.

As Mikey continued to block and parry the sword strikes, Bradford's sword slipped slightly, resulting in him accidentally cutting Mikey's finger, causing him to yelp in pain.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Bradford hastily apologized, walking over in concern to inspect the wound. But Mikey suddenly kicked him in the shins, causing him stumble back and allow Donnie to use his staff to trip him.

"Get him!" Donnie shouted, a big grin on his face as he jumped on Bradford.

"For the Shire!" Mikey laughed as the two turtles and the wolf began playfully wrestling with each other while Bradford laughed merrily as he played along. Usagi, Leo, and Raph watched and smiled in amusement at this scene before Usagi stood up and walked over to them.

"Gentlemen, that's enough." He said as he tried to pull Donnie and Mikey off Bradford, only for them to reach back and yank his Usagi's legs out from under him, causing him to fall on his back.

Meanwhile back with Splinter and Keno, the elf soon spotted something really far away. Out in the distance, there appeared to be a large light brown colored thing in the sky.

For a second, it almost looked like a small cloud, but the more he stared at it, the more unsure he became.

Raph seemed to notice this too and asked around, "What is that?"

Everyone turned towards the sky, and they too saw the strange brown mass. Splinter's eyes narrowed with suspicion.

"Eh, it's nothin'!" Casey scoffed with a passive wave, "Just a wisp of cloud."

Bradford shook his head uncertainly, "But it's moving fast... against the wind." The others soon noticed this as well. The wind was moving at their backs, and yet this thing seemed to be coming towards them. If it wasn't a cloud then what was it?

Suddenly, Keno's eyes widened, "Crebain from Dunland!" He shouted.

The Turtles looked at each other, confused. What was that supposed to mean?

"Hide!" Usagi yelled, giving the Turtles a hint that it was obviously something bad. Without a word, the whole Fellowship grabbed their things and began running to a tall column of rocks. Bradford, Keno, Donnie, and Mikey ducked under a mass of bushes while Splinter, Leo, Raph, Usagi, and Casey took shelter under the rocks.

For a few minutes, everything was silent. But then, the Turtles thought they could hear the sound of a thousand flapping wings. Suddenly, a whole swarm of birds flew overhead, circling the whole entire campsite. The Fellowship, with the exception of Splinter, Usagi, and Keno, were stunned at how many there were. They had never seen birds fly in such large groups like this before. There was something.. strange about these birds. And judging by Keno's reaction, they weren't ordinary birds, not by a long shot.

Finally, after circling for who knows how long, the Crebain flew off back the way they came. When they were a good ways away, the Fellowship emerged from their hiding spots and watched them until they were out of eyesight.

"Spies of Saki." Splinter sulked, "The passage South is being watched." He then sighed and turned his gaze to the snowy mountains, "We must take the Pass of Caradhas."

Everybody looked up in dread after hearing that. They had hoped that they wouldn't have had to go through the mountains, but seeing as there was no other choice, they were forced to take it anyway.

* * *

Raphael was in a bad mood. Why, you may ask? Because he and the Fellowship were traveling up a mountain covered in snow. _Very cold _snow.

Well of course is was cold, it was supposed to be cold! But the bad part was that he was slowly freezing to death as his teeth chattered, even though he was wearing his straw coat and kasa hat along with his brothers. His feet had already gone numb, even though he had his snow boots on. It was times like these that he wished he was back in the warm comforts of the Shire, and was starting to regret agreeing to coming on this stupid quest!

But it was too late to turn back now. And the Fellowship had no other choice but to take the path of Caradhas since taking the passage South was out of the question.

Leonardo's foot sank into the snow, coming in contact with something slippery. He figured it was ice. Within the second, Leo lost his balance and collapsed on his shell as rolled down the hill the Fellowship was currently climbing. Fortunately, Usagi was not that far behind him and rushed up to catch the blue clad turtle. Splinter and the others up ahead had stopped and turned around to see if the Ring Bearer was alright.

Leo brushed the snow off his cloak and his vest underneath before nodding to Usagi, both thanking him and indicating that he was alright. As Leo brushed some of the snow of the collar of his vest, his eyes widened as he began frantically searching his neck. The Ring was gone! Where was it? Had it fallen off when he tumbled down? Leo was now on the verge of panic as he scanned the area around for the Ring.

He caught sight of it almost immediately.

It was up ahead, close to the others. Leo was about to walk up and recover it but then halted. He stiffened when he saw Bradford bend down and pick up the Ring in his furry hand. Everyone froze and eyed the Gondorian Wolf suspiciously (and fearfully).

Usagi's eyes narrowed as Bradford stared at the Ring in what looked like some kind of trance, his full attention seemed to be focused on the Ring.

"Bradford." Usagi said cautiously.

But the Gondorion Wolf didn't seem to hear him. Leo's felt his stomach clench, he couldn't really explain it, but for some reason he really didn't want Bradford to be holding the Ring. Usagi's hand slowly moved down and grasped the hilt of his katana, ready to draw it if necessary.

"It's a strange fate that we should suffer so much fear and doubt," Bradford quietly remarked, a look of desire slowly inching it's way on his face, almost similar to one he had during the Council. Slowly, he reached out his other hand to touch it, "Over something so small." He finished, his voice almost a whisper.

"Bradford!" Usagi called out, raising his voice slightly.

This time, the wolf heard him and snapped back into reality. His hand lowered from the Ring as he looked towards the ronin.

Usagi nodded his head down to the turtle in front of him, "Give the Ring to Leonardo."

An awkward silence passed with Bradford staring at Usagi blankly for a few seconds before he looked to Leonardo. The turtle had a look of desperation in his eyes as he could feel his hands shaking slightly, just wanting nothing more then to just walk up to the Gondorian Wolf and take back the Ring.

Then, after looking down at the ground for a brief second, Bradford slowly walked down the hill towards the ronin and the turtle.

"As you wish," Bradford replied, nodding shakily as he held out the Ring to Leo, who immediately snatched it and put it around his neck again, "I care not."

Usagi gave Bradford a warning glare, but it didn't disturb him much. He looked like he wanted to say something else, but instead chuckled and gently patted Leo's shoulder before walking back up the hill. Relived, Usagi released his grip on his weapon.

He then looked up to Splinter and nodded that everything was fine. The Rat Wizard frowned concerned, but then began walking again as everyone else followed.

* * *

_Isengard_

The Crebain had finally returned to the caverns of Isengard. Word had reached Oroku Saki the White that Splinter had set off from Rivendell with a host of individuals. Where were they going? That still remained to be seen. All he knew was that they had the Ring with them, and that was all he needed to know for the most part.

Saki watched the birds fly down into the caverns, listening to the sound of their crows. Hearing the news, a slight dark grin came upon his face as his eyes shifted to the North, where the Crebain had returned from. Had Splinter learned nothing from him all the years they had known each other? Apparently not.

"So, you tried to lead them over Caradhas, Splinter?" Saki mused, "And if that fails, where will you go? If the mountain defeats you, will you risk a more dangerous road?"

* * *

_Caradhas_

The Passage of Caradhas had only gotten colder as it was getting later in the day. Whatever complaints the Fellowship had earlier regarding the whether was gone and was replaced with complaints about right now as the whether was only getting worse as a large blizzard had picked up.

To ensure that the Turtles didn't accidentally slip, a couple members followed close behind to help them keep going. Bradford handled Donnie and Mikey while Usagi looked after Leo and Raph.

Every member of the Fellowship felt numb as they walked across the side of the mountain, trudging through the thick snow that had now risen to their waists. The Turtles could hardly feel their skin, Casey couldn't feel his face, Splinter felt his face had frozen over but he ignored the cold, and Bradford felt his hands were slightly shaking.

It was unfortunately hard to climb up the path with so much snow. And the company's cloaks kept on dragging, which made them walk slower. Splinter was soon becoming tired of the storm and furiously moved his way through the snow, doing whatever he had to to pick up the pace. He kicked at it and even poked at it with his staff.

The only one who wasn't having any trouble was Keno. To the Turtles amazement, the elf wasn't even sinking into the snow like they were! Instead he was actually walking on top of it, as if he had no weight at all!

Casey glared at him, "N-no... f-f fair!" He muttered through chattering teeth. Raph and Donnie seemed to agree with him as they also shot not so friendly glares to the elf as well. Don't get them wrong, they admired the elves, they really did, but this one in particular seemed to enjoy showing off.

Keno, of course, was at the head of the group with Splinter following not far behind. As Keno looked over in the direction the snow was blowing, he could have sworn he heard the sound of someone shouting in the distance. The sound would be faint by most mortal standards, but for the young elf, he could hear it quite well, the voice sounding deep and commanding.

Keno soon recognized the voice and turned to the others, "There's a foul voice in the air!" Keno yelled to the others.

The Fellowship was now starting to hear the voice too. Most of them were confused, but Splinter and Usagi's eyes widened. They also recognized the voice, and it was _not _friendly.

"It's Saki!" Splinter shouted.

Oroku Saki?! He was controlling the whether?! Donnie would have questioned this, but then he remembered Saki was one the most if not most powerful wizard in the world. He had no time to react further when suddenly a loud crumbling sound came from above. Everyone looked up to a gigantic chunk of stone falling straight towards them. They jumped back just in time to avoid it as the stone hit the edge and fell down into the abyss below them.

The could hear the sound of thunder in the clouds and even saw some flashes of lightning, something that was not normal in a snowstorm. It didn't take a genius to figure out that this was a spell of some sort.

"He's gonna bring the whole mountain down!" Donnie exclaimed in horror. Usagi looked towards the Rat Wizard, "Splinter! We must turn back!"

But Splinter shook his head, "No!"

The Fellowship looked at him in disbelief. Was he insane?! Saki was trying to bring the mountain down on their heads and he was still wanting to press on?! They'd be dead if they continued on this path. But Splinter suddenly halted and looked towards where the storm was coming. Leo wondered what he was going to do.

The whole Fellowship could now hear Saki's voice more clearly now. Wherever the White Wizard was, he was chanting a spell that was making the blizzard worse by the minute. However, Splinter slightly lifted his own emerald staff and began chanting a counter spell of his own.

And so they all stood there in the middle of the storm for who knows how many minutes. The company, specifically the Turtles, were expecting the storm to lighten up. But unfortunately, it seemed like Saki had the upper hand, as proven when a lightning bolt struck the side of the mountain, resulting in a huge pile of snow tumbling down and was about to land on the company! Splinter and Keno backed up against the mountain as everyone else attempted to do the same. But before anyone knew what was happening, the avalanche of snow crashed down upon them!

Splinter, Keno, and Usagi were the first to dig themselves out, followed by Leo, Donnie, Raph, Mikey, Bradford, and Casey.

"I.. hate... snow." Raph grumbled.

"D-ditto, dude." Mikey shivered.

Bradford turned to Splinter, "We must get off the mountain!" He shouted, "Make for the Gap of Rohan, and take the West road to my city!"

Usagi looked at the Gondorian Wolf and shook his head, "The Gap of Rohan will take us too close to Isengard!"

Casey instantly perked up, "If we can't go over the mountain, then lets go under it! Through the Mines of Moria!"

Splinter's expression became dark as he did not reply. The Fellowship looked over to him to see what he had to say. Leo thought he could see a slight hint of fear in the Rat Wizards eyes. He wondered why he seemed so bothered by this Moria.

Splinter had no heart to tell any of them this, but there was a certain reason why he didn't want to go there. He had heard stories about it. Stories that were by no means pleasant.

"_Moria," _He could hear Saki's voice say in his head, "_You fear to go into those mines. The dwarves dug too greedily and too deep. You know what they awaoke in the darkness of Khazad Dum. Shadow and flame."_

Finally, Splinter spoke to the company, "Let the Ring Bearer decide."

Everybody then looked towards Leo. The blue clad turtle didn't know what to say as he just glanced at them nervously. Donnie and Mikey's faces were growing pale and he knew that he and his brothers were having a hard time with the whether.

"We can't stay here!" Bradford told Splinter, "This will be the death of the Turtles!"

Splinter looked down towards Leo, "Leonardo?"

Seeing that everyone was suffering, Leo knew what the decision would be. Even though Splinter wouldn't like it.

"We will go through the Mines." He finally answered.

Splinter sighed and admitted defeat, "So be it."

Caradhas has beaten them.


	18. Into the Mines of Moria

Chapter 18: Into the Mines of Moria

It was a relief to finally be out of the cold. The Fellowship could now officially say goodbye to the Pass of Caradhas, and good riddance too. They felt like they had wasted much time going over the mountains. Hopefully going through the Mines of Moria wouldn't be a waste of time either.

So far, Oroku Saki had known Splinter's every move. Did he know about this one? Probably, but was there anything he could do about it? That remained to be seen.

As they walked on the small grass down the mountain, Leonardo had been the first to notice that Splinter didn't look too thrilled about traveling through the Mines. What was he so afraid of? Was there something about the Mines that he wasn't telling them? Casey, on the other hand, seemed to be thrilled about going to Moria. He kept babbling and boasting on and on about how great a dwarf kingdom was, much to the annoyance of the others.

The further they traveled, the more the Fellowship noticed the grass was slowly disappearing, replaced by tons of rocks. They were basically traveling on gravel now, and it was hurting a lot of their feet. The Turtles seemed the most uncomfortable, especially since they had taken off their snow boots, kasa hats, and winter coats at the moment and were now bare foot.

It was funny how the land could switch from being freezing cold to completely dry. As the hours ticked by, the group lost sight of all grass. They just stone now. Big ones, small ones, medium sized ones, and weird shaped ones. Casey admired all of the stones and kept on muttering, "We're getting closer." every ten minutes.

The Fellowship soon caught sight of a huge stone arch up ahead, which Splinter seemed to recognize quite well. He stopped for a second though and took a deep breath.

He then looked back and smiled slightly, "Leonardo, come and help an old man."

Leonardo was more than happy to do so as he rushed up and put Splinter's arm around his shoulder.

"How is your shoulder?" Splinter asked quietly out of the blue.

Leo looked up at Splinter, and paused for a moment, "Better than it was before." He replied.

"And the Ring?" Splinter questioned. The two came to a full stop as Leo turned to fully face the Rat Wizard, "You feel it's power growing, don't you?" Splinter asked, his voice just above a whisper. Leo didn't answer, but instead nodded, "I have felt it as well. You must be cautious. Evil will be drawn from outside the Fellowship and I fear from within."

"Who do I trust then?" Leonardo questioned worriedly as the rest of the Fellowship passed them.

"You must trust yourself. Trust your own strength." Splinter replied.

"What do you mean?" Leo asked, slightly timid.

"There are many powers in this world for good and evil." Splinter explained with utter seriousness, "Some are greater than I am and against some I have not tested."

Casey suddenly stopped in his tracks, his jaw dropping in awe as he pointed his finger straight ahead, "There it is!" He exclaimed, "The walls of Moria!"

The Fellowship looked up and found themselves gazing at a large rock. In front of said rock was a small lake.

Raphael didn't really look too impressed and just rose an eye bridge, "It's a big rock."

Casey huffed at the red clad turtle, "You say that now, but the real beauty's just behind those walls."

Donatello tilted his head and gave him a look of sarcasm, "More rocks?"

Casey simply shot him a dirty look. Apparently dwarves weren't exactly fond of sarcasm.

The Fellowship wasn't surprised to find a narrow path going around the lake and alongside the mountain. There was enough space for at least two to three people to walk side by side, but a lot of the company didn't want to be to close to the water, as there seemed to be something unsettling about it. Splinter began to lead the Fellowship along the wall of Moria, with everybody watching their step and glancing at the water behind them. Michelangelo accidentally stepped into the water and almost immediately pulled his foot out of it, reeling in disgust.

Then something rather curious happened. Casey just walked to the side of the rock, pressed his ear up against it, and began to tap it with his axe, doing so with every few steps he took.

"Whatcha doin'?" Mikey asked, confused.

"Listening." Casey replied, tapping his axe again.

"Listening for what?" Raph asked, not sure what he meant.

Casey hit his axe against the rock again, "For an echo." He responded, "I'm trying to find the door that leads into Moria."

The Turtles looked at each other, still perplexed at the dwarf's actions. Leonardo then tapped Casey on the shoulder, trying his best not to insult him, "Shouldn't we be able to see the door?"

Casey smirked at Leo's question, turning around to face the young turtle, "If we could see the door, then Orcs could attack Moria whenever they wanted. But no, we dwarves are smarter than that. The best way to keep an awesome kingdom safe by hiding the entrance."

Donnie's eyes went wide in realization, "Of course!" He exclaimed, "Remember what Bilbo told us in his stories? Dwarf doors are invisible when closed!"

Splinter, who was now examining the walls, nodded in agreement, "Indeed, Donatello. Their own masters could not find them if their secrets are forgotten."

"Well, why doesn't that surprise me?" Keno muttered rhetorically.

Casey heard this and glared at Keno, grumbling to himself as he followed.

Turning a corner at one side of the wall, Splinter noticed the wall was smooth and appeared to be an odd design all over this little part of the wall. The rest of the Fellowship came up as well and watched the Rat Wizard examined the strange design. Most of it was a series of curves that went all over the place.

"Ah, _Ithildin._" He suddenly muttered to himself.

"Ity, what?" Michelangelo asked, raising an eye ridge.

Donatello glanced at the red clad brother and frowned at him, "_Ithildin, _Mikey." He corrected, "Their a series of small glowing markings that can be found on things like hidden doors." He then looked up at Splinter, "But, I don't see any markings."

Splinter turned back towards them, "That is because _Ithildin _mirrors only starlight," He then looked towards the night sky, "And moonlight."

The rest of the Fellowship glanced up at the sky as well. They could see a full moon slightly begin to peek out from behind the clouds. The company had hardly paid any attention to the sky much on this journey, but they had to admit that the night sky looked rather beautiful.

The moonlight shined down upon the designs, and to the awe of the group with the exception of Splinter and Usagi, the designs began to glow! A couple members stepped back in bewilderment as the outside line formed an arch and the designs filling the middle, lighting up some sort of inscription. The carving of the inscription seemed to be of elvish. They had indeed found the door.

"So cool." Mikey said in awe with his brothers nodding silently in agreement. Casey smiled proudly as he heard the orange clad turtle say that.

Splinter then traced his emerald staff across the elvish words as he translated, "It reads: _The Doors of Durin, Lord of Moria, Speak Friend and Enter._"

"What's that mean?" Donnie asked, not getting it.

Splinter looked at them and just smiled, "Well it's quite simple! If you are a friend, you speak the password and the doors will open."

He then pressed his staff against the center of the door and said aloud, "_Annon edhellen, hedro hiammen!_"

Everyone looked at the door eagerly, waiting to see if it would open. But to their confusion, nothing happened. They then looked to Splinter who looked just as confused.

However, the Rat Wizard rose his hands in the air and said another password, "_Fennas logothlim, lasto beth ammen!_"

The Fellowship looked at the door again, hoping the door would open this time. But once again, nothing happened. Splinter abruptly dropped his arms in disbelief.

"Nothin's happening." Mikey commented. Raph smacked him upside the head, "Thanks, Captain Obvious."

Now getting frustrated, Splinter walked up to the door and tried pushing it, but to no avail. The company looked at each other, wondering if they had another problem on their hands. If they couldn't get into Moria, then what would they do? They couldn't go back to Caradhas or the regular path to the Gap of Rohan because Oroku Saki would be waiting for them with some kind of trap.

The Rat Wizard looked completely baffled that none of his spells were working. Had he been away from Moria for so long? He pulled back from the door and shook his head, "I once knew every spell in all tongues of Elves, Mortals, and Orcs." He muttered to himself.

"What're we gonna do then?" Mikey stupidly asked.

"Knock your head against these doors, Michelangelo!" Splinter angrily snapped at the turtle, "And if that does not shatter them, and I am allowed a little peace from foolish questions, I will try and find the open words!"

Mikey stepped back a little ways from the wizard, now a bit frightened. Usagi just smiled slightly and patted the turtle on his shoulder.

The Fellowship had a feeling that this was going to take a while, so they set down their belongings and settled down on the ground. Donnie and Mikey, however, stayed standing, just looking around for anything along the lake. Casey leaned against a wall, taking out his pipe and beginning to smoke it. Bradford didn't look relaxed as he seemed anxious to get moving while he stared out into the black water of the lake. Leonardo sat the closest to Splinter, who was standing in front of the door chanting every spell he could think of.

Usagi and Raphael were a couple feet behind the company by their horse, Bill.

"The Mines are no place for a pony," Usagi told him, taking off Bill's saddle and placing it on the ground, "Even for one so brave as Bill."

Raph lowered his head and regretfully nodded. He wouldn't fully admit it, but he had become quite fond of the horse since they had left Bree. Of course he understood why they had to let him go, but it still deeply saddened him.

The red clad turtle placed a hand on the horse's head, "Goodbye, Bill." He muttered sadly.

And with that, Usagi sent his pony away. Bill galloped back down the way they came as Raph watched him tearfully until he was out of sight. Feeling sympathy for the young turtle, Usagi placed a hand on his shoulder, "Do not worry, Raphael." Usagi told him with a reassuring smile, "He knows the way home."

All Raph's response was a small nod before they walked back to join the others. However, as they went back, Usagi eyes widened slightly when he saw Donnie and Mikey tossing rocks into the lake. Quickly, Usagi grabbed both their arms before they could throw more in, "Do not disturb the water." He hissed at them.

"Why?" Mikey asked, confused.

Usagi pointed towards the water and muttered to Mikey, "There is something dark lurking in those waters. I do not trust it, and you might awaken that you do not wish to meet."

Donnie's eyes suddenly fixed on the center of the lake, "I... think it may be too late for that." He said nervously.

Everybody looked out at the lake and froze. There they could see medium sized ripples in the water, ripples that did _not _come from the rocks that Donnie and Mikey had thrown. No, these ripples were moving closer to the shore, and it was causing everyone to become nervous as they watched the ripples closely. What was beneath that disgusting murky water? It had to be something, maybe some kind of creature was causing the ripples.

Meanwhile, Splinter had officially given up on trying to open the door, "Oh, it's useless." He muttered, dropping his emerald staff and sitting down on a rock next to Leonardo. Leo didn't get why the doors weren't opening. If Splinter had tried every spell he could think of, then maybe there was no getting into Moria. But there had to be something. The Fellowship hadn't come all this way for nothing. One way or another, they had to get into Moria.

Leo looked up at the writing the writing on the door. '_Speak friend and enter.'_ What did that mean? Maybe there was something Splinter missed. What if there was no password and instead the answer was in the writing on the door?

Leo's eyes widened as it clicked in his mind.

"It's a riddle," Leo exclaimed in realization, standing up from his rock and walking over to the door, "'_Speak friend and enter.'" _He turned towards Splinter, "What's the elvish word for friend?" He asked.

Splinter looked at the blue clad turtle, slightly confused and yet curious at the same time, "_Mellon._" He replied.

Instantly, to everyone's shock, the stone doors opened outwards! Most of the company had jaws dropped while others looked irritated. The answer has been so simple! All they had to do was say 'friend' in elvish and they could've gotten in! Why hadn't anyone thought of that before?!

Well, no one even bothered to complain at how simple it could've been and instead quickly picked up all their belongings and prepared to enter the mines. Once everyone was set, Splinter was the first to enter the Mines of Moria with Casey eagerly rushing after him. Beyond the doors, all the company could see so far was just darkness.

As they went past the doors, the first thing that caught their attention was the smell. The whole place had a rather foul stench in the air as it almost smelt like something was rotting. Most of them would have plugged their noses, but they didn't want to be rude. Casey didn't seem to notice the this as he looked ahead into the mines.

He then looked up at Keno, "Soon, elf dude, you'll experience the fabled hospitality of the dwarves. Roaring fires, malt beer, ripe meat off the bone!" He announced rather humbly.

The Fellowship looked around the mines, expecting to see a dwarf or two come out and greet them, but strangely none did. There didn't seem to be anybody else in the dark hall where the fellowship was standing in. Where was everybody? Splinter blowed into the top of his cane, and it instantly glowed bright, providing some light for the entire room. They could now see some Dwarven statues along the walls and great stone stairs in front of them that lead deeper into the mines. But the company also saw several things laying along the stairs, things that they couldn't really make out.

Casey then spoke up again, "This, my dudes, is the home of cousin, Balin." His voice then filled with utter disgust, "And they call this place a mine. A mine!"

It didn't really smell like a mine. Well, at least it wasn't a smell that the company had expected.

Raphael looked around the mine, but still seeing no dwarves and then grumbled, "Not much of welcoming committee."

Bradford then felt something crunch under foot. He lifted it, and his face paled at what he saw.

"This is no mine," He stated, "It's a tomb."

Everybody looked down, and suddenly backed away in horror. Staring up at them was the decaying skeleton of a dead dwarf covered in cobwebs! The Turtles noticed they were standing right next to one and immediately gasped in fear as they moved away. The company looked left to see another dead dwarf, they looked to the right to see another, they slowly looked towards the stairs and realized what was all over them. They were the bodies of fallen dwarves.

That explained the stench. Raph and Donnie looked like they were going to be sick as their faces turned greener than usual. The sight of so many bodies was rather disturbing. Casey felt the same way, for he was examining up close every fallen dwarf within the room. And the more he looked, the upset he became.

Casey shook his head in despair, "No. No!" He then suddenly let out a monstrous yell, "Noooooooo!"

At first, no one said anything as they looked in utter disbelief at how many dead bodies were in the room. But then Keno noticed an arrow sticking out of one of the bodies. He bent down, pulled it out, and examined it. His eyes widened slightly and his face paled a bit as he recognized the arrow.

"Goblins!" He exclaimed, turning back to the others.

As soon as they heard that, everyone immediately jumped to action with Splinter, Usagi, Bradford, and Leo drawing their katanas, Raph pulling out his sais, Donnie unsheathing his staff, and Mikey pulling out his nunchucks.

Goblins?! Here?! How did they get into Moria?! The Turtles huddled together, their eyes wide and afraid. They had never seen those vile creatures before and had hoped to never encounter them, but it looked like that was inevitable as their eyes darted to every corner of the room, expecting something to jump out at them.

Bradford's face hardened, "We make for the Gap of Rohan. We should never have come here." He stated angrily as he gripped the sward in his paws, "Let's get out of here!"

For the moment, everybody agreed with the Gondorian Wolf. Coming to Moria was a big mistake, and they were more than happy to leave right away. They were about to turn around when a massive tentacle emerged from the black lake and snagged around Leo's leg!

Leo screamed in terror as he was dragged towards the water. Using Sting, he stabbed his sword into the ground, trying to use it as an anchor, but he quickly found that whatever was holding him was far stronger as his grip quickly began to slip from the hilt.

"Leo!" Raph cried as Donnie and Mikey gasped in horror.

Thinking quickly, Donnie and Mikey ran over and grabbed Leo, trying to pull him back as Raph began slashing at the tentacle with his sais.

"Usagi!" Raph called out before he cut off the tentacle, causing it to release Leo.

As the wounded tentacle disappeared back below the waters, the Turtles sighed with relief, thinking it was all over. But they soon realized how wrong they were as suddenly several tentacles burst out of the water, knocking them down before grabbing Leo again by the leg and hoisting him into the air, causing him to scream in horror as he dangled upside down while the tentacles attacked the rest of the Fellowship.

Usagi and Bradford ran out of the mines and into the water, chopping off as many tentacles as they could, but with little success. The thicker the arm, the tougher the skin was. Keno shot a few arrows towards the top of the tentacles, but that also had little effect.

Then, as Leo was being lowered towards the water, a huge slimy face emerged from the water, and it was both one of the scariest and ugliest sights he had ever seen. His face paled as he saw the creature open it's huge mouth, ready to swallow him whole. Seeing this, the Fellowship's efforts were doubled in the attempt to rescue Leo.

Usagi and Bradford began slicing off more tentacles, which got the creature's attention. Using the creature's distraction, Leo used his katana (which he had somehow managed to hold to the entire time) to cut the tentacle holding him, causing him to fall with Bradford quickly catching him.

"Quickly!" Splinter shouted, "Into the Mines!"

No one was willing to argue with the Rat Wizard as they immediately stopped fighting the creature and ran into the mines. Keno, however, shot a few more arrows at the creature's face before coming inside. The creature roared in pain for a second before furiously crawling up and grabbing the entrance with it's tentacles to try and catch them. But the rocks proved to be unstable underneath the creature's weight as the massive rocks from outside tumbled down and landed and completely blocked the entrance!

For a few seconds, the Fellowship was shrouded in complete darkness as everything fell silent.

"We now have but one choice," Splinter spoke aloud, tapping the ground with his staff, creating a bright light at the head so everyone could see, "We must face the long dark of Moria."

As tough as it was for the Fellowship to hear, this was now officially their only option now. They couldn't move that rock from the entrance. And even if they could, there was a possabilaiy that the creature was still out there waiting for them. So their only option was to go forward, into this 'great' Dwarven kingdom.

Without a second thought, everybody picked up all their things and followed Splinter towards the steep stone stairs.

"Be on your guard," Splinter warned, his face grim, "There are older and fouler things than Orcs in the deep places of the world."

Everybody exchanged a look at that. What exactly did he mean by that? What could possibly be worse than Orcs at this point? Maybe it one of those 'fouler things' down here that made Splinter so afraid to come to this place.

The company was soon starting to feel said fear too, as Leo was now starting to regret deciding to come to Moria.


	19. A Journey in the Dark

**Hey guys! Calmoose hear again! I just want to thank you all for the one thousand ****views. I also want to give a shout out to Turtle415 for his/her support, thank you so much and please enjoy!**

Chapter 19: A Journey in the Dark

"Quietly now," Splinter whispered to the Fellowship as they made their way up the stone stairs, "It is a four day trip to the other side. Let us hope that our presence goes unnoticed."

The Turtles immediately stopped in their tracks, eyes wide and jaw dropped, "Four days?!" Raphael exclaimed in disbelief as quietly as he could. The other turtles seemed to feel the same way. Four whole days of nonstop walking in the dark?! How would they survive?!

Usagi and Bradford noticed a couple of torches at the top of the stairs and rushed up to grab them. Apparently everybody was wanting to get as much light as possible if they were going to be traveling in the dark for four days.

With some help from Splinter's lit staff, the two quickly had the torches blazing, making things even brighter. With light now surrounding the whole Fellowship, Splinter led them into the darkness before them. As their eyes became more adjusted to the dark, they could start to see what the mines looked. It was enormous! Most of the company, specifically the Turtles, never thought they would see a kingdom with so much empty space beneath the mountains.

They were now walking along a narrow stone pathway that went through huge stone arches. And the group was not surprised to still see no one at all. The Dwarven population had vanished from the Mines. Well, besides the dead corpses they saw laying along the path. But they knew better than to think the Mines were deserted. Thanks to Keno's observation, they knew that goblins had attacked this place and killed all the dwarves.

But Casey kept insisting that there had to be some survivors deep in Moria, and no doubt his cousin, Balin, would be with them. According to him, the elder dwarf wouldn't go down without a fight. Yet, Splinter remained unsure about Balin's fate.

Throughout most of the walk, the Turtles, especially Leonardo, had been very quiet almost the whole time. Raphael kept his eyes lowered to the ground. He didn't like Moria, and was eager to get out as soon as possible. He was still a bit sad about having to let Bill go. And now that they had discovered a huge creature beneath the black water, Raph was now even more worried about the pony. What if that thing had got him? What if poor Bill was dragged into that filthy water and eaten?! He tried to hold back his tears, but unfortunately, he couldn't prevent a couple from rolling down his cheeks.

Though it was dark, Michelangelo was able to notice the tear streaks on Raph's face that were dampening his mask. Feeling sympathy for him, he walked over and hugged his big brother, gently patting him on the shell. Raph didn't pull away and instead returned the emprace as he silently cried into his little brother's shoulder. It had little effect, but Raph was grateful for the comfort nonetheless.

Leonardo, of all his brothers, had been the most quiet. He felt like he made a mistake about deciding to come to Moria. And it made him fear more for the saftey of his brothers and friends. He didn't feel any better about choosing to be the Ring Bearer, but he had a feeling that this would've been part of what he was getting himself into. And he accepted that. He was doing this for all of Middle Earth, especially the Shire. Oh how he missed home. He missed the comfort of his house, the harvesting and planting, the taste of the first strawberries of the new year, and Mikey's delicious pizza. So many good things happened back home, and for the first time on this journey, he would actually miss it. He wondered if this was how Bilbo felt when he set off on his grand adventure with the dwarves of Erebor.

There was also something else keeping Leo quiet. He was closer to the end of the group, and since no one was talking, he could hear the echoing of footsteps. However, when Splinter halted the company, Leo heard something that sounded a bit off. He was confident that all members of the Fellowship had stopped at the same time, yet he still heard the echoing of their feet. Well, at least for a second. The blue clad turtle wasn't sure if he was just imagining things or not, but it almost sounded like something was following them. Whenever they moved, he could hear the faintest sound of feet not far behind them. But he didn't worry about though, if he actually did see something, then he'd tell Splinter.

As the hours went by, they were now walking along a path right up against one of Moria's walls. As the company looked around, they could see tons of big chains hanging all over the place. Below them was a huge dark pit that looked to be the size of a small lake. Splinter suddenly stopped in his tracks, tracing his hand across a wall that had some sort of strange markings on it. As he did, he noticed that they felt rougher than the stone wall itself.

He then turned to the others, "The wealth of Moria was not of gold or jewels," He stated, shining his staff down into the large pit, "But Mithril."

The Fellowship's jaws dropped when they got a good look at the pit. It appeared to be a mining pit, but went down for miles and miles! It was so deep that they couldn't even see the bottom. How long did it take the dwarves to achieve this?!

"Woah, that's a long way down." Michelangelo said in awe as bent down further to the pit, only to be pulled back by Donatello. Casey looked unbothered and just grinned with pride at the pit's 'beauty'. And as for the rest of the group, they were just simply awestruck.

"Bilbo had a shirt of Mithril rings that Thorin gave him." Splinter commented as he began to walk forward again.

"That was a kingly gift, yo!" Casey exclaimed.

"Thorin?" Donnie asked, remembering Bilbo's stories, "As in Thorin Oakinshield? He was the king of Erabor, right?"

"Indeed," Splinter confirmed solemnly, "And he was a close friend of Bilbo. Unfortunately he after he became king, all eyes across Middle Earth turned towards the mountain, for both it's wealth _and _position. Eventually within few days, war broke out between Dwarves, Mortals, Elves, and Orcs. Thorin joined the battle, but was killed by the time it ended." He then smiled slightly, "I never told Bilbo this, but it's worth is greater than the value of the Shire."

That revelation caused the Turtles to stop for a brief moment, finding it both stunning and hard to belive what Splinter just said while also slightly taken aback by how quickly Thorin had died. Bilbo hadn't talked much about Thorin. Maybe because the topic was too painful for him? Aside from that, it was also shocking to hear that a simple shirt made Mithril had more value then all of the Shire!

Everyone fell silent again after that, their original feelings returning. It seemed that not even conversation could improve their feelings about traveling through Moria. Why should it? Non of them had ever traveled in the dark for this long.

Mikey shivered a bit, he would not fully admit it to anyone but his brothers or Bilbo, but he had been afraid of dark ever since he was a little kid when he and his brothers were playing hide-and-seek back in the Shire. Mikey had fallen into a large dark hole that was barely lit with sunlight and had to wait at least two hours before his brothers and Bilbo came to rescue him. Now granted, he had built up more of a tolerance to it as he grew up, but he was still uncomfortable about being in the dark for more than a few hours, let alone a full day. That was something he did _not_ want to go through again. What he did want was to see some sunlight. Several hours in total darkness was just too much for him to handle. And now there was a slight chill in the air, since of course there would be. They were after all, underground in a sense. To him, this place was almost no different than Caradhas. And Mikey hated being cold, he needed warmth. If only Splinter would allow them to get some rest for a little bit. But the Rat Wizard showed no signs of stopping, looking like he wanted to get out of Moria as fast as possible.

But judging by the fact that it was a four day journey to the other side, Mikey felt that they would be stuck walking through these mines for a _very _long time.

* * *

More hours had passed, and the Fellowship was starting to slow down. They were tired, hungry, angry, and very cold. What time even was it?! Did anyone even know what day it was?! Donatello couldn't tell anymore! All he had seen for all these hours was total blackness! Was there just no end to it?!

Taking a deep breath, he managed to calm himself. There was no point in complaining now since that would get them nowhere. Donnie just wanted to see the sun. Surely it would be out after how many hours they had traveled. Or had it gone down again? Ugh, he didn't know! The darkness of Moria felt like an eternal night! And he was having a hard time keeping himself awake.

To make things worse, after turning a corner and finding a steep column of stairs before them. Raphael grumbled something under his breath while the rest just looked up the stairs knowing it meant one thing: they were going to have to do some climbing. And that was the last thing they were in the mood shot Splinter some hopeful glances, their eyes comically wide and begging that he let them have some rest. But that hope was quickly shattered when the old rat started to climb up the stairs.

With a groan from a couple of the group, the whole company soon followed. But since the stairway was so steep, a majority of them had to kneel down on their hands and knees to climb up. Which didn't really make them feel comfortable as the staircase had tons of dusty rotting dwarf skeletons on it. Suddenly, Mikey slipped and backed up into to Donnie, nearly startling him to death, "Mikey!" Donnie quietly scolded, grabbing his brother by his shoulder and pulling him back up.

Finally, after what felt like several minutes of nonstop climbing, the Fellowship reached the top of the stairs. Most of the company panted with exhaustion as they were all trying to catch their breath from all the climbing. But when they looked up, they saw Splinter staring ahead, still as a statue. They all glanced past him and noticed what he was looking at. There were three doors that led three different directions. It didn't take a genius to know that it was unlikely that they would wind up leading to the same spot. They all looked like they were leading to different rooms, although most of them couldn't tell because there were even more stairs.

Splinter turned his head towards every door, completely silent as some members of the Fellowship raised a brow, wondering what the hold up was.

Splinter then tilted his head, "I have no memory of this place." He finally said with a hint of embarrassment in his voice.

The company exchanged glances, "What do we do then, Splinter?" Keno asked.

The Rat Wizard looked back at the company and realized just how weary they were. Even he had to admit that they had been traveling longer they should've. It was indeed time to rest, especially since he was having a rather difficult time remembering this particular area.

Splinter smiled kindly at his companions and replied, "Perhaps this would be a good time to rest. We have traveled far over these past couple hours, and you deserve a good sleep."

Overjoyed to hear, the Turtles dropped their bags and collapsed onto the floor in pure exhaustion. Nobody could really express how relieved they were to be taking a rest. Most of the company instantly fell asleep the moment they sat themselves down. Others got a small fire going and just sat around it, taking out pipes and smoking. Splinter walked up and sat himself upon a large stone in front of the three passageways and just sat there in deep thought. Ever since they go to Moria, things hadn't really seemed to be going their way, and Splinter was getting pretty annoyed at that. First, he didn't remember the spell to open the doors, and now he couldn't remember which pathway was the right one to take.

* * *

Everything seemed to be quiet at the moment as Leonardo sat close to the edge of the stairs they had been climbing earlier. As he sat, he decided to see what the others were doing. Usagi and Casey, no surprise, were smoking their pipes and just watched the fire while Bradford was sharpening his katana using a nearby rock and Raphael was just nibbling on a little biscuit left over from an earlier lunch. Keno just watched Splinter, wondering what he was going to do while Donatello and Michelangelo were mumbling to each other.

"Donnie?" Leo heard Mikey whisper to his brother.

"What?" Donnie asked, slightly annoyed.

"I'm hungry." Mikey simply said.

Raph's jaw clenched as he turned his head and whispered, "Mikey?"

"Yeah?" The orange clad turtle asked.

Raph smacked him upside the head, "Shut up!" He hissed aggravated.

Leo's gaze shifted to the bottom of the stairs, and expression changed to one of horror as he quickly stood up and looked more closely at they way they had come. Far down where they had come, there was something moving. And it didn't look like falling rocks, but instead looked small and very alive. Was it one of the goblins? No, it looked to small and it didn't appear to be carrying any weapons. Leo could tell, however, that it had hands and feet.

He watched as the thing creeped along the path and then abruptly dashed behind some rocks, causing Leo to wonder if it thought he had spotted it. This was enough to make him jump to his feet and rush up to Splinter.

"There's something down there," Leo told him, "It's small and_ very_ creepy looking."

Splinter, who was still staring at the doors, replied unsurprised, "It is Gollum."

Leo's eyes went wide and he glanced back at the rocks the thing had hidden behind.

"Gollum?" Leo exclaimed in disbelief, "The creature that Bilbo stole the Ring from?"

Splinter nodded, "He has been following us for three days."

Overhearing that, Donnie was a little happy that one of questions was answered. Still, he couldn't believe that they had been in Moria for three days already!

Leo, on the other hand, couldn't believe what he was hearing, "He escaped from the dungeons of Barad-Dur?!"

A frown came upon the Rat Wizard's face and he looked towards him, "Escaped... or was set free."

Leo's eyes furrowed in confusion, "Wait, set free? Are you saying Shredder just let him go? Why would he do that?"

Splinter simply huffed, "Why does the Shredder do anything? He always has a purpose for his actions. He would do anything to retrieve the Ring, even use ones who have a strong connection to it." He then pointed back to the mines for a brief second, "More specifically, use the one person with a strong connection."

Leonardo looked back, now seeing the shape of a creature hiding behind some rocks, looking up at the Fellowship. Leo thought he could slightly see Gollum's bulging eyes in the dark, but he couldn't make out the rest of his figure.

He then glanced back at Splinter, "The one person?" He asked, confused, "I thought Bilbo would have a strong connection to the Ring too."

Splinter once again shook his head, "That is both true and untrue at the same time, Leonardo. Yes, Bilbo had a strong connection to it, but the Ring was only in his possession for sixty years. Gollum, on the other hand, has had it for over five hundred."

Five hundred?! Was he serious?! Gollum had lived for over five hundred years?! How was that even-?! Leo decided not to really question it further as Splinter explained further.

"A connection like that can draw him anywhere the Ring is," He continued, "And now the Ring has drawn him here."

Leo frowned and looked back down. If Gollum could be drawn to the Ring like the Foot Elite, and was so obsessed with it that he came into Moria with them, would he really try to kill them all in their sleep and retrieve his precious ring? Leo doubted that was possible as nine companions would be more than a match for a small creature such as Gollum.

He glanced at the path, trying to see if he could get another look at the creature. But of course, he found no sign of him, figuring he had ducked under the rocks again.

"He will never be rid of his need for it," Splinter then said with a shake of the head, "He hates _and _loves the Ring. As he hates and loves himself." He then let out a deep sigh, leaning forward and folding his hands, "Smeagol's life is a tragic tale."

Leo was confused again. Smeagol? Who was Smeagol? But then his eyes went wide in realization. No. Surely Splinter didn't mean-

Seeing Leo's expression, Splinter nodded sadly, "Yes, Smeagol was what he was once called before the Ring found him," He confirmed, looking forward again, "Before it drove him mad."

Leo's jaw clenched as he glared darkly at the spot where Gollum was hiding, "It's a pity Bilbo didn't kill him when he had the chance."

Splinter was slightly taken aback by the young turtle's bitter comment as he glanced towards him. That was kinda dark coming from him.

"Pity?" Splinter replied, "It was pity that stayed Bilbo's hand. Many that live deserve death, and many who die deserve to live." He then frowned, "Can you give it to them, Leonardo."

Leo's expression softened as he became lost in thought.

"Do not be too eager to dispense death and judgement," Splinter advised him, "Even the very wise cannot see all ends. My heart tells me that Gollum has a part to play yet, for good or ill... before this is over." He then gave a small shrug, "The pity of Bilbo may rule the fate of many."

Leo sat down next to Splinter, "I wish the Ring had never come to me," He said, his voice heavy, "I wish none of this had happened."

Splinter placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, causing Leo to look up at him, "So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide." He said understandingly, "All we have to decide is what we do with the time that is given to us." He gave Leo a warm comforting smile, "There are other forces at work in this world, Leonardo, besides the will of evil. Bilbo was meant to find the Ring, in which case you were also _meant _to have it. And that is an encouraging thought."

Leo, inspired by Splinter's words, smiled back before hugging him, "Thanks, Splinter," He said, "I really needed that."

Splinter returned the embrace, "You are welcome, my friend."

After releasing from their embrace, Splinter's gaze then went to the pathway on the right and suddenly exclaimed, "Oh! It is that way!"

When the Fellowship heard that, they all jumped to their feet, eagerly putting out the fire and gathering their belongings. It was about time he figured it out! Everybody was more than eager to get moving again. Sitting in the same spot for several hours had gotten pretty boring.

"He's remembered!" Donnie remarked.

"No," Splinter replied with a smile as he stared at the path, "But the air does not smell so foul down here. And if no doubt, Donatello, always follow your nose."

Leo chuckled, "Never change, Splinter." He said as the rest of the Fellowship followed him down the path.


	20. Unfortunate Fates

Chapter 20: Unfortunate fates

The Fellowship didn't walk for too long as Splinter suddenly stopped at the bottom of the stairs. They looked ahead to see a wide open area completely shrouded in darkness. They could only see slight glimpses of large shapes in the distance. Though it looked a little creepy, Splinter wasn't bothered by this. There was a slight hint of a smile on his face, which was quite a surprise for the Fellowship aside from Leonardo, as they had not seen him smile much since they had entered the mines.

"Let us risk a little more light." Splinter said, stepping forward and lifting his staff, causing it to glow brighter.

A couple members of the Fellowship sighed in relief. They didn't really want to travel in the dark in a place like this, wherever they may be in Moria. But what the Rat Wizard's light revealed left them completely awestruck. With a good amount of light now surrounding them, they realized that this place wasn't as bad as it appeared. It was actually astonishing!

In front of them were massive stone pillars that went on for miles and miles in the largest open area they had ever seen. It looked like a whole city could fit in here and there would still be room for a small village in it! In fact, it looked like it _could _have been a city! Several designs ran across the pillars that added to their amazing look.

Splinter waved his hand around, "Behold, the great realm and dwarf city of Dwarrowdelf."

They were right about it being a city.

"That's an eye-opener for sure." Raphael remarked in awe with everyone else silently agreeing with him.

Splinter looked back at the Fellowship, smiled, and waved them forward, as there was nothing to fear here. At least for now. And they did follow him, without even hesitating. Once they got close enough to a pillar, Donatello ran his hand along the side of it, feeling the smooth cold stone against his skin. These pillars had to be centuries old.

"Look at this." Donnie said in admiration, "Such detail, perfect execution, just... flawless."

"Woah, look at this place. It's amazeballs!" Mikey whispered excitedly.

Casey simply beamed with pride. Oh, he knew this place all too well. This was the real home of his cousin, Balin. However, the young pug-dog-like dwarf was confused about something, what had really happened to Balin? He looked to the right wall and suddenly stopped in his tracks, a look of horror on his furry face. The Fellowship was confused and looked over as well.

At the center of the right wall was a small wooden door that was slightly open and with several dead bodies laying inside.

Without warning, Casey sprinted towards the doors, "Casey!" Splinter called out to the dwarf, but he ignored the Rat Wizard's shouts and ran right through the wooden doors. The company exchanged glances. What had gotten into him?

"Casey?!" Leonardo called out. But when he got no reply, he decided to rush in after him, despite Splinter calling out to him too.

Past the door was a smaller room with a slight ray of sunlight shining down on Casey, who was kneeling before what looked like a stone table with runes written on top of it. But as he got closer, he noticed there were dead skeletons laying all around the table, and Leo figured that a brutal fight must have taken place here. But he was still confused as to why Casey seemed so upset.

The dwarf kept on shaking his head in disbelief, "No. No." He then laid his helmeted head on top of the table and began to silently weep, "No."

Leonardo walked closer to the table, noticing it's shape and form before totally realizing what this place was. It was a tomb.

The rest of Fellowship walked in, finding the two individuals standing beside the tomb. Although they didn't realize it was a tomb until they walked up to them. When Splinter got a good look at it, he closed his eyes in regret.

"_Here lies Balin, Son of Fudin, Lord of Moria." _Splinter read with a sad sigh.

Everyone immediately understood, and a majority of them lowered their heads in respect. Keno felt sorry for poor Casey, as he could the grief and despair on the young dwarf's face as Bradford put a comforting hand on his shoulder and just gently patted it.

Splinter handed his emerald staff to Mikey. The youngest turtle confusedly took it, even though he had no idea what to do with it.

"He is dead then," Splinter mumbled, "It is as I feared."

Casey's wailing became a little louder as he crumpled further down onto the ground. The Turtles looked at the tomb, placing their hands on it and not saying a word. Bilbo had told the brothers a lot about his friendship with Balin during their quest to take back the Lonely Mountain. And now he was just gone, just like Thorin Oakenshield. They didn't have the heart to tell their uncle about this, but he would have to find out eventually. _All _of Middle Earth would need to know of Balin's passing. They were just glad that they weren't traveling back home just yet, so the knowledge of the old dwarf's death would have to be told once this quest was complete.

Eventually, Casey's cries stopped, and all he could do was stare at the tomb mournfully. He didn't say a word, for the grief was too much for him to bare.

Bradford was right, Moria wasn't much of a mine anymore. It actually was a tomb. This once great kingdom was now nothing more than an empty graveyard, covered with the bones of the fallen.

Splinter looked down and noticed a dwarf skeleton next to the tomb and rose a curious brow. He saw it's boney arms were wrapped around a very old-looking book. The Rat Wizard knelt down, carefully setting the dwarf's arms down on it's sides, and picked up the book. It was old indeed, because a couple of pages accidentally fell out of it. Splinter blew off the dust on it and then opened it up, looking through the remaining pages. The Fellowship perked up and watched him as he skimmed through the book.

"This must be the Chamber of Mazarbul, the Chamber of Records," Splinter realized. His eyes narrowed when he looked at a couple pages, "i cannot read most of this, but it seems this book contains the records of the dwarves that came back with Balin and reentered the mines."

Mikey, still holding Splinter's staff, wasn't really paying attention to what they were all saying. Instead, he was looking around the chamber, slightly creeped out by the number of skeletons.

Keno had grown slightly nervous all of a sudden and walked up towards Usagi, whispering, "We have to move on. We can't stay here."

"_They have taken the Bridge and the second hall." _Splinter read, trying to read the what he could, "_We have barred the gates, but cannot hold them for long. The ground_ shakes._ Drums in the deep."_

That sent a chill up everyone's spine as Mikey began walking backwards, looking around him.

Splinter read on, "_We cannot get out. A shadow moves in the dark."_

The Fellowship looked around nervously. They didn't know why, but the more the Rat Wizard read the book, the more fear and dread they had in their hearts. Mikey suddenly looked behind him and noticed a well. On top of said well sat a skeleton holding chains.

"_We cannot get out," _Splinter read. He then looked up at the others as he read the lat sentence, "_They are coming."_

Suddenly, everyone jumped in horror when a loud clanging sound filled the air. They twirled around saw that Mikey had touched the skeleton sitting on the well. But when he had done so, that resulted in it's head falling off and down said well. The orange clad turtle turned around to face them, a pit pale in the face and regretting what he did.

To make things worse, the skeleton's whole body, along with the chains, suddenly fell down the well, creating an even louder noise. It went down for who knows how long, and every time it hit something, it sent loud echoes through Moria. Mikey closed his eyes and flinched in shame every time he heard a booming sound from the well. But it finally stopped.

"Um, oops." Mikey said sheepishly.

The Fellowship held their breaths, expecting to hear something in response to that. But after a couple of seconds, they heard nothing. Finally they all sighed in relief.

Splinter furiously closed the book and retrieved his staff from Mikey, "Fool of a Took!" He scolded harshly, "Throw yourself in next time and rid us of your stupidity!"

Leo, Raph, and Donnie all had to agree as they glared at their little brother. What was he thinking?! They all knew there were others in these mines! And if they had heard that-!

_Boom!_

Everyone froze. Oh, they heard that alright. But they were hoping that it wasn't what they thought it was.

_Boom!_

All eyes slowly looked towards the well, for that was where the noise was coming from. Those definitely sounded like drum beats. All the relief was swiftly washed and replaced by fear.

_Boom! Boom!_

After the last boom, there was suddenly tons of loud screeches below. Not Foot Elite screeches; the Turtles would've known that noise. Those screeches were not as bad, but still terrifying nonetheless. And the drums began to beat much faster. Pretty much every member of the company had gone pale as they could hear the clomping of thousands of feet from down below.

"Leo!" Raph exclaimed, pointing to his brother's side.

Leo looked down and realized Raph was pointing at the sword Bilbo had given him. 'Sting', he remembered what it was called. He removed the katana from his sheath and stared. It was glowing blue!

_The blade glows blue when Orcs are close._

If the sword was glowing blue, then that only meant-!

Keno had the exact same thought and said it before Leo could.

"Orcs!"


	21. Battle in Balin's Tomb

Chapter 21: Battle in Balin's tomb

The next few seconds were chaos. And the enemy wasn't even at the door yet! But they were coming, and there was a lot of them. Bradford rushed towards the door to look around for any sign of them. He got his answer immediately as two arrows all of a sudden shot past him and stuck into the door.

Keno took out his bow and the Turtles took out their weapons as they were now starting to panic. They knew exactly what was coming. Bilbo had told them a lot about the Orcs and Goblins he had encountered on his adventures, but now they were going to actually meet some. And it was horrifying.

Usagi looked over to the four turtles, "Get back!" He ordered them, "Stay close to Splinter!"

They didn't hesitate as they immediately ran behind the Rat Wizard. Splinter stood in front of them and put his arms around them. Usagi rushed over to help Bradford close the door all the way. The entire Fellowship could hear the Orcs getting closer, confirming they were most definitely in Dwarrowdelf by now.

Usagi and Bradford heaved with all their might, and finally pulled the door shut. The wood was so old that it was difficult to pull. But as soon as it was shut, there was a monstrous roar that caused the companies eyes to go wide, as they knew that was no Orc screech.

"What was that?!" Raph horrifically exclaimed.

Bradford seemed to know that sound, as did Usagi. Both had aggravated frowns on their faces.

"They have a cave troll." The Gondorian Wolf replied with a slight groan.

This day just kept getting better and better. Now everyone was _really_ worried. All the locals of Middle Earth knew cave trolls all too well. But the Turtles had only seen the statues of the three trolls Bilbo encountered back in Trollshaw Forrest, and they were huge. So after hearing that there was an actual _living _troll right behind that door with the Orcs, of course they would be worried.

Turned towards the door and drew a hidden sword from his cane. When they had been traveling a while back, he said that the blade was called 'Glamdring the Foe Hammer.' The Rat Wizard also had his staff at the ready.

Usagi and Bradford backed away from the door. And a few seconds later, they could hear the Orcs chopping at the wood outside. The Turtles hands, which were still clenched on their weapons, were now starting to shake like crazy out of fear.

Keno attached an arrow to his bow and pointed it at the door, one eye closed. Casey had surprisingly put his grief aside for now and picked up his axe. The dwarf was so furious you could see the bloodlust in his eyes. Casey then jumped on top of his cousin's tomb and turned towards the door.

"Let 'em come!" Casey snarled, "There's one dwarf still in Moria who still draws breath!"

Usagi took out a bow as well and stood at the ready with Keno. They could all hear the wood was starting to weaken as they aimed at the door.

Nobody breathed. Each second there was a hack at the door. Their eyes were completely fixed on it. They knew what was about to happen. They had it lucky when they first set out from Rivendell, but now the real fight was about to begin.

It finally happened when a sword came poking through the door, creating a small hole. The door wasn't going to hold for much longer. Every member of the company clenched their fists, counting down the seconds before the battle began.

When there was a big enough hole in the door, Keno fired his arrow, and it was a definite hit as they heard a yelp of pain from one of the Orcs outside. Usagi followed suite and fired his arrow, hitting another Orc behind the door. The hacking at the door became more vicious as it was clear that they were making the enemy angry now. Keno readied another arrow and fired again. Another hit, but this time, the doors broke open and the Orcs came in.

The Turtles could have sworn they were in some sort of nightmare. These things were hideous. There were big ones, small ones, each having either green or grey slimy skin. Their teeth were yellow and crooked with bits of blood running out of the corners of their mouth.

Usagi shot one more arrow at the swarm before dropping it and unsheathing his katana, doing so as they were upon them. Usagi and Bradford went head on against them, swinging their swords at any creature that came near them. Some Orcs tried to block the blows with their own swords, but were no match for neither the Rabbit Ronin nor the Gondorian Wolf.

However, the two of them weren't enough to keep the enemy from passing, and a lot of the vile creatures went charging towards the rest of the Fellowship. Casey quickly leapt off his cousin's tomb and brought his axe down upon an unsuspecting Orc's head before decapitating another. Leo and Raph managed to stab a few Orcs with their weapons while Donnie and Mikey simply batted them away while also avoiding their sword strikes. Splinter was stabbing, batting, slashing, hitting several Orcs with his sword and his staff with ease.

Usagi and Bradford were the ones who fought closest to the door. The ronin sent his blade into the chest of another. One Orc was right up to his face that he had no choice but to behead it. Bradford used his shield for cover as the Orcs kept on viciously swinging their blades at him. When they got the slightest bit sidetracked, he pounced. He went for the leg of one, lopped off the heads of two others, stabbed through abdomen of another, and continued this pattern back and forth.

Just then, the ground slightly shook beneath their feet as there was a loud thumping sound coming from outside. Raph managed to impale an Orc in the neck with his sai before turning to the door just in time to see a very large shape walking towards the chamber. Within the next few seconds, a ton of stone on top of the door came crashing down, and in came a cave troll! A huge chain was around it's neck and it was holding a really big club.

The troll let out a monstrous roar, which was deafening to everybody's ears. Keno fired an arrow at it, hitting it right in the chest. But of course, that didn't stop the troll as it only seemed to get angrier. It began to stomp forward and swung it's club all over the place, not seeming to care who he hit as the club hit and killed an Orc.

Raph did what was probably the stupidest thing he had ever done in his life and tried to attack the troll. He rolled under it's legs as the troll tried to smash him with it's club. The troll looked around for him, and finally saw him trying to crawl away. But Raph had backed into a corner, meaning he was trapped.

The troll raised it's foot to try and squash the turtle, but suddenly felt something pulling on it's chain. It turned around to see Usagi and Bradford pulling on the chain to get it away from Raph. But the troll would have none of it and swung it's club at the two of them. Usagi was wise to take cover, but Bradford was still holding onto the chain. That gave the troll the opportunity to grab his chain and send the Gondorian Wolf crashing into the wall.

Bradford sat up in pain and twitched for a few moments, trying to regain his senses. Everything had become a haze. All of a sudden, an Orc noticed the Gondorian Wolf on the ground and tried to take this opportunity to kill him when a tanto knife flew out of nowhere and hit the Orc in the neck and killing it instantly.

Bradford looked over and realized it was Usagi who had thrown in. He gave him a small nod before stabbing another Orc through the chest.

Out of nowhere, the troll came charging at the company, not caring if it hit any Orcs along the way. Casey jumped on his cousin's tomb and threw his axe at the troll, nailing it in the chest. The troll roared in pain as it swung it's club down at Casey, who managed to jump out of the way just in time as the club unfortunately smashed Balin's tomb. The dwarf looked at the ruins of his cousin's resting place, and became even more angry than before and increased his attack on the beast.

He thought twice, though, when the troll on swinging it's club at him. Knowing he couldn't take it down single handily, Casey was forced to back away when the troll also began to swing it's chain at him. Keno spotted the creature from the platform above and reached for two arrows, attaching them to his bow and firing. It was a direct hit as it sent the troll stumbling backwards. Casey let out a short laugh and then swung his axe at a couple of Orcs.

The troll recovered from the arrows and then angrily began to make it's way towards the elf. It swung it's chain at the platform, but Keno ducked and weaved to avoid it. Eventually though, the chain wrapped itself around a pillar, giving Keno the opportunity to jump onto it and nimbly walk up it to the trolls head. Now standing on it's shoulders, Keno grabbed two more arrows and shot them down on the creature's head. That resulted in loud roar of agony from the troll, and it tried to grab the elf, only for Keno to jump down and get back into the battle.

Raph was now fighting on a higher platform, and for a young turtle, he was doing quite good against the Orcs. Any Orc that came by him he would stab with sais or punch and kick them away. Within a few minutes, he had taken down almost every one of those creatures that was on his side of the platform.

"I think I'm getting the hang of this!" He remarked with a slight laugh.

Meanwhile, Donnie, Mikey, and Leo were running along the platform, trying to avoid running into too many Orcs, but just enough to fight and kill. However, they came around a pillar and suddenly screamed in fear as the cave troll stood in front of them, raising it's club and bringing it down on them. The good news, it missed. The bad news, it had separated Leo from Donnie and Mikey. It seemed to have more of an interest for him. Leo tried his best to stay out of the troll's sight, but he could hear the troll sniffing for him.

Leo shifted around the pillar, desperately trying to avoid being seen by the troll. He halted when he almost ran into the creature's leg and just waited. He could hear it breathing right around the corner. But thankfully, after a couple sniffs, it moved away from that spot. Leo was about to move back behind the pillar when the troll suddenly came around the corner and roared right in his face, causing Leo to lose his balance and fall to the floor. He tried to crawl away, but backed into a corner, with the troll grabbing him by the foot and trying to pull him towards it. Leo tried to grab something, but wasn't able to hold on to anything.

He then noticed Usagi fighting off a couple Orcs a few feet away from him.

"Usagi!" Leo called out, taking out his and stabbing the troll's hand causing it to drop him and roar in pain.

The ronin whirled around, and when he saw what was happening, his eyes widened in horror. Grabbing a large spear nearby, Usagi jumped in front of the troll. The beast swung it's club at him, but Usagi ducked and shoved the spear right into the troll's stomach with Raph, Donnie, and Mikey up on a higher platform, throwing rocks at the troll. But Usagi soon realized that the skin happened to be really tough, as the beast batted him away, slamming him into a nearby wall and rendering him unconscious. Leo crawled over to wake up Usagi, but then found himself backing up against the wall a few seconds later, cornered by the troll.

The troll pulled the spear out of it's stomach as Leo got up and tried to make run for it. But the troll blocked him with spear and shoved back into the corner of the wall.

And that was when the most horrible unexpected thing happened.

The troll _stabbed_ Leo in the plastron.

The whole world around them seemed to slow down as all the members of the Fellowship froze as their hearts stopped. Splinter, Casey, Bradford, and Keno looked horrified as they nearly dropped their weapons. Raph, Donnie, and Mikey were the most horrified. Did that thing just kill Leo?!

Leo let out a gargled yell of pain before his face went pale and his eyes rolled to the back of his head. The troll gave a menacing grin.

This couldn't be. This couldn't be real. Leonardo wasn't dead! He couldn't be! As sorrow and grief filled the Fellowship's hearts, so did anger. Raph, Donnie, and Mikey tightened their grips on their weapons and scowled at the monster that had seemingly killed their brother. Without warning, Donnie and Mikey whipped out the blades from their weapons before jumping on the trolls back, stabbing repeatedly. Now, normally Raph would have thought what they were doing was crazy until he found himself joining them seconds later and stabbing at the troll's head with his sais. The beast was surprised by this sudden attack began to roar both in pain and anger.

Splinter, Bradford, Casey, and Keno were now plowing through the remaining Orcs in the chamber, showing no mercy as they killed them in cold blood.

Once all of the Orcs were dead, the Fellowship looked towards the center of the chamber where only the cave troll remained. Raph, Donnie and Mikey were still furiously trying to kill it, and it seemed like they were succeeding as the troll dropped it's club. However, the beast managed to reach behinf his back and grab Donnie. The troll then held the screaming turtle in the air while also trying to get Raph and Mikey. The Fellowship tried to stab and slash at the troll's legs while also avoiding it's strong swings.

It finally got to the point where the creature couldn't take it anymore and just rolled back it's head, letting out an angry roar. But it failed to see Keno take out his bow and shoot an arrow into the troll's open mouth. The troll stumbled a bit, giving a low moan before it loosened it's grip on Donnie and collapsing to the ground dead, with Mikey rolling off it.

Everybody immediately rushed over to Leo's limp body. Usagi had regained consciousness and looked over at the turtle. When he saw the spear in his plastron, the ronin immediately removed it from him. Sorrow came onto the rabbit's features as did the rest of the company. Raph, Donnie, and Mikey knelt down to their fallen brother, tears rolling down their cheeks.

"Oh, no." Usagi mumbled hopelessly as he rolled the turtle onto his back.

But once he did that, the Fellowship was given another unexpected surprise, Leo's eyes opened! He coughed and bit and sat up as the company stared at him in bewilderment.

"**LEO**!" Raph, Donnie, and Mikey cried out as they tackled their older brother in a tight loving embrace, tears of joy streaming down their faces, while the others sighed in relief.

"Your okay!" Mikey sobbed.

"Your alive!" Donnie wailed.

"You dork!" Raph cried before jabbing his finger into Leo's chest, "You scared the heck out us!"

Leo smiled, hugging his brothers back and then nodded to everyone, "I'm alright. I'm not hurt."

"But you should be dead." Usagi said in disbelief, while also relieved that he was alive, "That spear would have skewered a wild boar."

Splinter raised both of his brows and muttered with a slight smile on his face, "I believe there is more to this turtle than meets the eye."

Leo nodded before unbuttoning his vest, revealing Bilbo's mithril shirt underneath! It had protected him!

"Mithril!" Casey exclaimed, looking at the turtle with a newfound respect, "You sure are full of surprises, Leo."

But the Fellowship's amazement was broken when they heard another series of shrieks. They looked towards the door and realized that they were hearing even more Orcs entering Dwarrowdelf. The company looked to each other and realized the fight wasn't over yet. This was only the beginning of their escape from Moria. Splinter lowered his head for a brief moment and then looked back at his companions.

"To the Bridge of Khazad-dum."


	22. The Balrog

Chapter 22: The Balrog

No sooner did Splinter say those words, the whole Fellowship was running out of the tomb and back into Dwarrowdelf, trying to make their way to the Bridge of Khazad-Dûm. They all jumped when they heard the screeches of more Orcs. But when they looked behind them, they wished they hadn't looked at all. There was a whole mass of the vile creatures giving pursuit! Big enough to be almost an army! And they were coming from left and right! What's more was there were different creatures, kinda similar looking to Orcs, crawling out of holes in the roof and down the city's pillars.

It wasn't hard to guess that these new creatures were Goblins. They had sickly green skin, eyes with long slit pupils, and were hunched over like some wild animals! When the Turtles had been told that they were at war with the dark forces of Mordor, they certainly got the 'dark force' part right!

And what was worse, the Orcs and Goblins seemed to slowly be surrounding the Fellowship, which gave the company the sinking feeling that they couldn't outrun them. Almost every pillar the Fellowship passed was crawling with hordes of Goblins, some coming down from the pillars ahead of them.

Splinter abruptly halted and spread out his arms to make everyone stop. They were officially surrounded by Orcs _and_ Goblins that were running towards them.

"We're trapped!" Donatello shouted in panic.

Raphael jerked his head from side to side, looking rather fearfully at the enemy, "How are we get out?!"

Nobody had an answer to that. Although there was a very high chance they _weren't _going to get out, but they didn't want to say it aloud.

"Everyone, back to back!" Usagi ordered, drawing his katana.

The company made a small circle, their backs turned to one another, pointing their weapons at the enemy. The Orcs and Goblins had finally caught up with them and halted. None of the Fellowship made any sudden moves, for they were both afraid and ready to take down as many of these creatures as they possibly could. Either way, they knew they were going to die. There was no cover, just the vast wide open area of Dwarrowdelf, and it was basically filled with Orcs and Goblins except for the small circle where the Fellowship stood.

The creatures hissed mockingly at them, scraping their swords together. The Goblins, in particular, had an interest in the Turtles, showing them their sharp twisted fangs. Michelangelo slightly backed away and hid behind Usagi and Splinter. The company tightened their grips on their weapons, their breathing heavy and their hearts racing.

This was not how they expected to go out. They still had a quest to fulfill. And if they died, the enemy would find the Ring and bring it to the Shredder, and this whole journey would've been for nothing. Leonardo knew it was highly likely, but he was _really _hoping for something unexpected would happen and save their lives, for he wasn't ready to die. None of them were.

But then, to Leo's amazement, something did happen. At the far end of the city, a sudden bright reddish orange light appeared as well as a deep rumbling roar. Both the Orcs and the Goblins suddenly cringed and shrieked in fear. Without even glancing back at the Fellowship, the creatures began to run away with the Goblins retreating up the pillars and the Orcs diving down into the trenches.

Everybody smiled shakily laughed a bit in relief. Well, all except Splinter of course. The Rat Wizard's eyes narrowed as he stared at the large reddish orange light in the distance. The groups smiles faded too when they followed his gaze, their relief fading and replaced by a knew concern when they saw the light. What was that? It couldn't be a fire, and yet they saw the light slightly flicker. They had thought it was a fire at first, but then where did that roar come from? It wasn't an Orc, a Goblin, or even a troll.

It sounded more... evil than that.

Splinter's expression was surprisingly full of fear. He just looked at the light and didn't say a word. The others could tell he was afraid, which none of them had really expected. He obviously knew what this was.

"What is it now?" Bradford asked quietly.

Splinter didn't answer immediately and instead closed his eyes in regret. Donnie studied Splinter's expression. He could see conflict within the wizard. Fear, sorrow, and especially regret. But why? That's when Donnie realized something. Was this the whole reason why he was so afraid to come to Moria? The purple clad turtle didn't need to wonder, because he had a feeling that he already knew he was right.

"A balrog." Splinter finally replied, "A demon of the ancient world."

Keno's eyes widened. He had heard about balrogs. That they were once wizards like Splinter and Oroku Saki before they were corrupted to evil. He had never encountered such a creature before, and he had hoped that he never would.

The Turtles, nor the other members of the Fellowship really knew what a balrog was, but they too began to develop fear in their hearts. The reddish orange light was close enough to tell them that this creature was something pure evil.

"This foe is beyond any of you," Splinter said, turning towards another doorway, "Run!"

They didn't need to be told twice as it was already on their minds. As soon as Splinter began running towards the doorway, so did everyone else. The whole city was slightly shaking, making it hard to tell if it was an earthquake or that thing was walking this way. The latter seeming the most likely. And if the creature could literally shake the ground by just walking, then it had to be _way _bigger than a troll.

Most of the company, except for Usagi, Bradford, and Splinter, put their weapons away, having a strange feeling that they wouldn't be of much help against the balrog. They needed to get as far away from the Dwarven city as they could. Splinter stood at the side of the entrance, letting everyone pass through before glancing back one last time at the light before following.

They rushed down a set of stairs, but this time they were surprisingly shorter than the ones they previously walked through in the mines. None of that mattered to them, though, as they were more focused on trying to get away from this supposed giant demon creature thing.

Bradford was the first to enter the new area. However, as he rushed down the stairs, he failed to see they abruptly ended. And when he realized what was happening, it was too late. As he found himself looking down upon a great chasm snd accidentally dropped his torch. He was just about to fall as well when Keno pulled him back up. Bradford nodded his thanks to the elf as the rest of the Fellowship caught up to them.

Splinter stumbled in last, leaning against his staff and trying to catch his breath. Usagi looked back at him and rushed up to see if he was alright.

"Splinter?" The ronin asked worriedly.

Splinter placed a firm hand on the rabbit's shoulder, "Lead them on, Usagi." He then nodded to his left, "The Bridge is near."

Usagi looked over to see a narrow stone bridge far off in distance hanging over the chasm. Suddenly, another roar erupted behind them, causing everyone to look back. The reddish orange glow was getting closer, as it appeared to be even brighter than before.

Usagi looked at Splinter, confused, but after hearing another roar from the balrog, the Rat Wizard harshly pushed him away.

"Do as I say!" Splinter snapped, walking past him, "Swords are of no more use here!"

He then pointed to the staircase to the right of the Fellowship and instructed everyone to run down it. Everybody did as they were told, being more than happy to do it. Splinter and Usagi were at the rear of the group while Bradford and Keno were at the front. As they went down the stairway, they could see there were many twists and turns along the path. According to Splinter, this would be there way to the bridge.

Bradford and Keno carefully guided the Turtles down with Casey right behind them, standing on either side of them and hoping none of them would slip and fall by accident. Donnie studied the stairway as they down it. Saying that the first path they used to travel into Moria was dangerous was now an understatement. This path was far more dangerous, as this chasm was _very _deep. And it made some members of the company feel sick to the stomach.

The only comfort of going down this path is that it'd finally get them out of Moria. They had had just about enough of the darkness, Goblins, and especially Orcs. They wanted to see and feel the sun again.

However, the Fellowship came to a gap in the stairway, forcing them to halt. Some stone must have fallen off and broken it. And the only problem was that the other side was a bit far away. How were they supposed to get to it?! However, Keno all of a sudden leapt into the air and successfully landed on the other side, making Casey roll his eyes. That elf continued to be a showoff.

Another roar came from the doorway, causing Splinter to look back. They were far away from the door, but he could see that the reddish orange light had gotten even brighter, indicating that the beast was getting closer.

"Splinter!" Keno shouted, beckoning the Rat Wizard to jump.

Without a second thought, Splinter jumped over to the other side. But before anyone else could get over the gap, an arrow suddenly whizzed past the Fellowship's heads and nearly missed Bradford. Everyone turned to see tons of Goblins standing along a platform, equipped with bows and arrows.

More arrows were shot their way, causing the Fellowship to duck slightly. Everyone quickly realized that they were vulnerable on the stairs. But they weren't just gonna sit around and allow themselves to be shot. Keno and Usagi took out their bows and fired back, though it was hard for Usagi since the Goblins were so far away. Keno was having no problems as elf eye sight was far stronger than mortal eye sight.

Taking the covering fire to his advantage, Bradford grabbed Donnie and Mikey and jumping to other side as a greater chunk of the steps they were standing on fell off and into the chasm below. Now the Fellowship had to figure out how they were going to get the others to the other side since they wouldn't be able to catch each other from a distance like that.

Another wave of arrows came in as Usagi picked up Raph and tossed him to the other side where Splinter and Keno caught him. Now the only ones left were Usagi, Leo, and Casey. Keno fired more arrows back at the Goblins, hoping to distract them away from the rest of the company. However, he was quickly running out of arrows, so it wasn't going very well.

Usagi turned towards Casey, about to grab him and toss him across when Casey held up his hand, "Nobody tosses a dwarf, yo!"

With that said, Casey then jumped towards the other side, and for a second, it looked like he was going to make it. But then he began to slip backwards and was fearfully waving his arms all over the place. However, before he could fall, Keno ran up and grabbed the young dwarf by the hair.

"Not the hair!" Casey shouted angrily at him.

Keno couldn't restrain a smirk as he quickly pulled Casey up.

However, as the balrog got closer to them, so did the force of the shaking. Soon another rock came down from the ceiling, crashing onto the steps behind Usagi and Leo and creating another gap behind them. The ronin and the turtle were not trapped on a small piece of stairway. And what's worse, the support below it wasn't strong enough as they stairs began to tip. Usagi grasped Leo and told him to hold on. The stairway began to slowly sway back and forth, and they could hear small pieces of stone crumbling off the support.

Everyone's hearts pounded as they watched. Usagi helped Leo keep his balance while also trying not to make any bad move that would the stairs give way.

"Lean forward!" The ronin then told the turtle.

They both did just that and thankfully, the stairs began to tip towards the others with Keno and Bradford ready to catch them. When the stairs crashed into the other side, Usagi and Leo stumbled off, but were caught by Keno and Bradford.

Now with everyone safely across, Splinter and the Fellowship rushed down the remainder of the stairway.

When they finally reached the end of the stairs, the Fellowship came into a room that was mysteriously lit up by a wall of flames. But they didn't pay much attention to it as they spotted the Bridge of Khazad-dum to the left of them. They couldn't believe it. They actually made it! Beyond the bridge was the way out of Moria!

Splinter pointed to it, gesturing for everyone to go ahead of him, "Over the bridge!" He shouted, "Fly!"

The company didn't need to be told twice as they ran towards the bridge. Splinter was about to follow them, he suddenly had a strange feeling in his heart. A sense of dread filling him.

Splinter slowly turned towards the wall of flames with Fellowship stopping and looking back at the wizard. Wasn't he coming? What was he looking at?

Then, out of midst of the flames, a huge head shot out from the fire, revealing the body of a monstrous creature. It was black with large leather wings and a horned head. It's entire body seemed to be engulfed in flames, but it didn't seem to bother it at all. The Fellowship's eyes went wide with fear as they realized what it was.

This was it. This was the creature Splinter had spoken of. The balrog shown itself at last! The balrog glanced at the company before giving a loud roar at them, breathing fire from it's mouth.

Most of the company had never encountered nor seen a real balrog before. So they had no idea what to do in this situation. But right now, it seemed like a pretty good idea to run!

The Fellowship didn't look back as they rushed towards the bridge with the balrog in pursuit. The balrog didn't even need to run as it walked after the company with great strides, each step shaking the ground.

Thankfully, the Bridge of Khazad-dum was just ahead of them! The Turtles were the first to cross over it, followed by Casey, Keno, Bradford, and Usagi with Splinter taking up the rear. The company didn't even look down to see the deep dark chasm below the bridge as they crossed. Nor did they mind that the bridge was very narrow as they were overcome with fear of the balrog.

Soon they all managed to successfully cross the bridge, reaching the other side.

Except for Splinter.

The company stopped and looked back, surprised to see that the Rat Wizard had stopped in the middle of the bridge. His grip tightened on both his staff and his sword as he glared at the monster. The balrog had reached the edge of the bridge when the wizard turned to face it.

"You cannot pass!" Splinter yelled at the beast.

Leo looked at the wizard, his eyes going wide in worry, "Splinter!"

The balrog stopped. It looked down at Splinter before menacingly rising to it's full height. The old rat looked like a tiny insect in comparison to the creature.

The Fellowship couldn't believe what they were seeing! What was he doing?! He couldn't fight this thing alone?! He'd be killed!

Splinter pointed his katana at the balrog.

"I am a Servant of the Secret Fire, Wielder of the Flame of Anor," Splinter then rose his staff, creating what appeared to be mystical shield around him while the beast reached down and drew out what appeared to be a giant flaming sword, holding it above it's head, "The dark fire will not avail you, Flame of Udun!"

The balrog then abruptly brought it's flaming sword down upon the wizard. But miraculously, Splinter's shield to block the blow, which brought a flash of green light as the balrog's sword shattered into pieces, with only the hilt. Frustrated, the balrog dumped the hilt aside and roared angrily at Splinter.

"Go back to the shadows!" Splinter snapped, glaring darkly at his foe.

But the balrog had had enough of the old rat's games, placing a foot on the bridge and drawing a flaming whip, swinging it over it's head. It then slashed a nearby wall with it to try and intimidate the wizard. However, Splinter remained undeterred and instead rose his staff into the air and held there for the balrog to see.

"_YOU SHALL NOT PASS!_" He bellowed.

Then, with a great heave, he slammed his staff down hard on the bridge, creating a huge flash of light as the stone beneath monster and the wizard's feet rumbled. The balrog looked down at the bridge and snorted at the old rat, beginning to wonder if it was safe to fully step on it. It looked Splinter straight in the eye as their he met the creature's gaze evenly, not even moving a muscle.

The company wondered what Splinter had done to the bridge. That flash had to have done something! The balrog paused for a moment, but then pressed it's foot down harder on the stone. Nothing happened. The balrog gave another snort, now starting to walk along it, convinced that the bridge was perfectly safe.

It rose it's whip once more, ready to strike at the Splinter. But as soon as the balrog took another step, half the bridge upon which it stood suddenly gave way while the wizard's half remained perfectly intact. The Fellowship looked in amazement as the balrog fell down into the chasm. He actually defeated it! The balrog roared up at Splinter as it fell, but the latter just watched, expressionless.

Finally, the Rat Wizard let out a sigh of relief and began to turn away and head back to the others. The company also sighed in relief.

But before anyone could do anything, the balrog swung it's whip, wrapping it around Splinter's leg and began pulling him down into the chasm! He clung to edge of the bridge, struggling to hold on. The Turtles let out a cry of alarm as Leo tried to go up and save their friend, but Bradford held him back as it was too dangerous for the Ring Bearer to go up alone.

"_Splinter!"_ Leo cried, struggling to get out of Bradford's grip. Why was Bradford holding him back?! Why was no else going to help him?! Splinter was hanging off the bridge, his fingers slowly slipping off the stone. He looked to all of the Fellowship and then straight to Leo. There was a brief silence between them all for a moment, none of them even acknowledging or noticing the horde of Goblins running towards the bridge, their bows and arrows out.

"Fly you fools!" Splinter said.

With that, he suddenly let go of the bridge, falling into deep chasm with the balrog.

The Fellowship's ear were ringing, their faces pale with shock. Did they just see that?! Did they just see their leader actually die?!

"_Nooooooooooo!"_ Leo screamed, tears filling his eyes.

Despite the horrid pain in their hearts, the Fellowship then noticed the Goblin's and Orc's standing at the edge of the broken bridge, preparing to fire their arrows in a last attempt to stop the company's escape. Bradford carried the mourning Leo in his arms and ran, followed by everyone else. The Gondorian Wolf turned around and called out the ronin's name.

Usagi snapped back into reality and dodged and deflected the Goblins arrows as he followed the company around the corner and up another set of stairs, ignoring the creature's shrieks of anger. They didn't care when they finally rushed out of Moria and into the bright warm sunlight. They didn't sigh in relief as their nostrils filled with fresh air.

Instead, almost everyone dropped to the ground on the hill they were standing on, their grief and sorrow coming back. At this moment it was impossible to hide their emotions. They didn't want believe what they had seen, but they knew their eyes didn't deceive them. Splinter the Grey was dead. There was no way he could survive that fall, especially with the balrog.

Keno stood a ways off from the company, just looking down at the ground in grief. He was in a mixture of sadness and disbelief. He had known Splinter for a long time, and had been loyal to him over his own people. To see that he had actually fallen was the hardest thing for the young elf to realize.

Casey was feeling sorrow for both his fallen kin in Moria and Splinter. A dwarf couldn't take sadness, and he tried to replace it with fury. He wanted nothing more than to go back and fight every Orc and Goblin who ruined his home and killed his brethren, but Bradford held him back. The Gondorian Wolf did not show his emotions, but he felt for everyone sitting around him.

Raphael sat on top of a rock, burying his face in his hands as he sobbed. Donatello sat weeping behind his younger brother, who lay in his lap, crying. Michelangelo had the most tears out of everyone, for he felt that it was his fault this happened. He never should have messed with that skeleton. If he hadn't, he wouldn't have alerted the enemy to their presence and maybe Splinter would still be here.

Usagi, who was still feeling the pain as much as the others were, suddenly said firmly, "Keno, get them up."

Bradford looked at the ronin in disbelief, "Give them a moment, for pity's sake!"

"By nightfall these hills will be swarming with Orcs!" Usagi snapped, pointing to a huge forrest in the distance, "We must reach the Woods of Lothlórien." He then spoke in a more calm tone, "Come Bradford, Keno, Casey, get them up."

Deep down, they knew the ronin was right. Despite the loss, they had to keep moving, and grieving for Splinter wouldn't bring him back. Slowly, all the Fellowship rose to their feet. Usagi, Bradford, Casey, and Keno helped to get the Turtles up.

The ronin helped Raph up and gave him a firm pat on the shoulder, "On your feet, Raphael."

Leonardo had walked off to the other end of the hill and was just staring off into the distance.

"Leonardo!" Usagi called out.

The turtle didn't respond, but slowly turned back to them, thick tears rolling down his cheeks. The sun may be out, but there was a cloud of sorrow covering the Fellowship.


	23. The Lady of Light

Chapter 23: The Lady of Light

The whole Fellowship was completely silent as they left Moria's hills and journeyed into the land beyond. They were all still grieving over the loss of Splinter.

With the wizard gone, there was now the fact that the Fellowship needed a new leader to get to Mordor. Obviously, Usagi fit that description. And the ronin had already taken up that position as soon as Splinter had fallen into the chasms of Moria.

However, Usagi seemed a bit different now than when the Turtles first met him. In _The Prancing Pony_, he had been nothing more than a scruffy and untrustworthy ronin. Yet now, after everything they had been through, Usagi appeared to have evolved into a wise and courageous leader. No wonder he was destined to be the king of Gondor.

After a few hours of crossing shallow streams and rough rocky terrain, they finally reached the woods of Lothlórien. Most of the company was almost completely worn out, since Usagi has had them sprint almost the whole way. Of course, they understood that Orcs would be on Moria's hills by nightfall, but did they really have to sprint?

When they entered the woods, they noticed how this forrest was... different compared to others. Most had a muggy swamp look about them, yet this place had a strange beauty to it.

Casey turned around and quickly beckoned the Turtles, "Stay close, guys!" He whispered, "They say there's a great sorceress that lives in these woods. An elf witch of terrible power. All who look at her fall under her spell and are never seen again."

"Don't be ridiculous," Usagi said, shaking his head, "Lothlórien is a place of healing. There is no evil in it, unless a man brings evil there with him."

A collective silence filled the company as they journeyed further into the woods. The wind blew softly in the air.

_"Leonardo." _A voice spoke.

Leo jerked his head left and right, searching for the source of the voice, which strangely, no one else seemed to hear. Whatever it was, it sounded like a wise feminine voice, "_You are coming to us is the footsteps of doom." _The voice said, "_You bring a great evil here, Ring Bearer."_

He then felt someone tap on his shoulder, "Leo?"

Snapping back to reality, Leo whirled around to see it was just Raph.

"Are you okay, bro?" Raph asked in concern.

Leo closed his eyes and took a deep breath. How could explain this? The sorrow he felt about Splinter being gone, and now suddenly hearing a strange voice in his head.

"I-I'm fine, Raph." Leo lied before they kept on walking.

That was a lie, Usagi knew this. He did not fear the woods, which was somewhat able to set most of the Fellowship's minds at ease. Michelangelo and Casey, however, were still not convinced.

"If I get the slightest feeling I'm being put under a trance, I'm gettin' out of here!" Michelangelo whispered fearfully to Raphael. Raph rolled his eyes and elbowed him in the rib as they continued walking.

Casey then gave a confident smirk, "Well, here's one dwarf she won't draw in so easily! I've got the eyes of a hawk and the ears of a fox!"

But the young dwarf's boasting quickly came to a stop when he found his face a mere couple inches away from the tip of an arrow pointing straight at him. He stared at it, wide-eyed and gulped. Nobody else had time to react as suddenly a host of individuals emerged from behind the trees, each one armed with a bow and arrow.

Keno quickly took out his bow and pointed it at the newcomers, but didn't shoot due to them being surrounded.

"Nice work, fox." Raph mumbled sarcastically to Casey.

No one paid attention to his comment as they glared darkly at their captors and held their hands up in surrender. But they then noticed Usagi didn't look very bothered. Confused, they looked more closely at the newcomers, and noticed the more human like features. They were elves!

Once they realized this, they looked slightly relieved, well, except Casey of course. They lowered their hands, and when one of the elves stepped forward, he and the rest of his people put down their weapons.

The Elf, who apparently was the leader of the group, glanced at all the members of the Fellowship before his gaze shifted down to Casey.

"The dwarf breaths so loud, we could've shot him in the dark." The Elf Leader spoke in a mocking tone.

Casey glared at him and growled in anger while some of the company glanced at each other with small smirks.

Quite a welcome this was.

* * *

The Fellowship, surrounded by the party of elves, were escorted deeper into the forrest of Lothlórien as nightfall came upon them. Though they didn't see the company as a threat, the Fellowship did notice that the Elves still had they're bows at their side. None of them knew if they did so in case Orcs showed up or if they didn't really trust them.

Nevertheless, the company moved along quietly, not wanting any trouble from the Elves. As they walked along, it wasn't hard to tell that Casey didn't like them. The young dwarf just continued to grumble to himself while also shooting some dirty looks at the Elf soldiers beside him. They paid no mind to him, however, and it seemed like they were ignoring him on purpose.

They soon came to a group of small trees that went up a good ways. The company noticed that on said trees were tons of large platforms that were cleverly concealed by the leaves and branches on top. The Elf leader waved his hand up to one of the platforms, and immediately a rope was tossed down. He then told the Fellowship to follow him up, to which they obeyed without much hesitation.

When they finally reached the platform, the company was seated in rather comfortable chairs while Usagi and Keno negotiated with the Elf leader. No one could understand what they were saying, due to them speaking elvish, but they managed to make out that the leader's name was Haldir. All three of them seemed to be on friendly terms.

Haldir nodded nodded at Keno with a smile, "_Welcome Keno, son of Thranduil." _

Keno smiled, "_Our Fellowship stands in your debt, Haldir of Lorien."_

Haldir nodded to Keno and then looked at the ronin, "_Ah, Usagi of the Dunedian, you are known to us."_

Usagi bowed back, "Haldir."

Casey, who was growing really tired of not being able to understand a word they were saying, spoke up in a rather rude tone.

"So much for the legendary courtesy of the Elves! Speak words we can understand, yo!" He grumbled.

Haldir looked over to the young dwarf in disgust, "We have not had dealings with the Dwarves since the dark days." He answered bitterly in English.

Casey didn't seem to care about how Haldir talked to him, "And ya know what this dwarf says to that? Ishkhaqwi ai durugnul!" Casey replied, equally bitter.

Haldir stepped back, looking both in shock and anger by what he just said. The Turtles looked between the two, confused.

Raph leaned over to Keno, who was just as offended at what Casey said, "What'd he say?" He whispered.

Getting over his shock and anger, the Elf looked towards Raph, "You don't want to know." He replied.

Usagi turned around and smacked Casey upside the head for such rudeness, "That was not so courteous!" Usagi snapped at him.

Hardly any of the Fellowship had been rude to Casey, but if said one more disrespectful thing, they all would no doubt shut him up. This was not the time nor the place to start picking fights, especially with the Elves. Fortunately for them, Casey kept his mouth shut after Usagi scolded him.

Haldir then noticed the four turtles that were standing behind the Fellowship. His eyes went from Raph, to Donnie, to Mikey, and finally to Leo. When he gazed upon him, Leo had a feeling that Haldir knew he carried the Ring. His next words confirmed his suspicions.

"You bring a great evil with you," Haldir said sternly and slightly fearfully. He then looked to Usagi, "You can go no further."

The Elf then walked off, but Usagi immediately walked after him. All the Fellowship looked towards Leo, not sure what to say. Haldir wasn't wrong. Leo indeed carried a great evil with him. But now that the Elves were basically preventing them from leaving because of said evil, they didn't know what to do.

As Usagi and Haldir stood away from them, having a quiet argument in elvish, they all spread out along the platform and just sat in silence as the moonlight shined down on them. Some of them were by themselves while others just quietly talked to each other. None of them had ever imagined this journey to be so hard and dangerous as it had been. So much pain and suffering all just to take this little ring to Mordor and cast into the fires of Mount Doom.

The company found themselves glancing over at Leo quite often. But when Leo met their gazes, they immediately turned away. Bradford sat across from the blue clad turtle in silence.

"Splinter's death wasn't in vain," Bradford said softly, causing Leo to turn to him, "Nor would he have you give up hope. You carry a heavy burden, Leonardo. Don't carry the wait of the dead."

Leo gave a small smile and nodded in thanks. He then noticed Haldir walking up to them. The Fellowship quickly stood up as Haldir looked at all of them.

"You will follow me." He said.

* * *

The next morning, the company found the escort to be not as hostile. It seemed Usagi and Keno's negotiations with Haldir had paid off. They could see the Elves weren't as stiff and solemn like before when they first escorted them through the forrest.

Michelangelo wondered where they were going. He guessed they were going to see the supposed 'witch leader' of Lorien, but why the long travel? All he was seeing was trees, bushes, and even more trees. What else could be waiting for them within these woods? Haldir wasn't much of a conversationalist, unfortunately. Despite this, Mikey found himself enjoying the fresh air once again. He loved the feeling of the sun on his skin and the smell of fresh leaves and grass filling his nostrils. And it was far better feeling than the dark, cold, dirty smell of Moria.

That ancient Dwarf Kingdom was not so pleasant. Casey's description of it had not at all lived up to it's actual appearance. Now it was a Goblin/Orc infested pit. And it was one place Mikey swore he'd never visit again. Too many bad things down there during their four day journey. Even though he was starting to feel a little better, Splinter's death still bothered him as much as it bothered his brothers. And it would continue to bother them for a majority of this journey.

As the Fellowship went deeper into the forrest, they noticed things around them were slowly starting to change. They could've sworn that the trees they were walking through now looked far more stunning and beautiful than the trees at the entrance of the forrest. The Turtles were now starting to get the feeling that Elves would inhabit any beautiful place they could find. Were there more Elven Kingdoms, they wondered? No doubt. Right now, only time would tell if they would ever lay their eyes upon them.

It was by sunset when the Fellowship finally reached the middle of Lothlórien. Haldir stopped on top of a hill and gazed at the horizon. The others joined him and followed his gaze. Far ahead of them, they saw a wide, treeless space that went on for a good long ways, except for the very middle. At the center of this treeless gap were trees that were even more higher than the ones beforehand. And the sight of them was stunning! They could see the branches on these trees were lit with gold, silver, green, and blue lamps that shined dimly in the sunset light. Even Casey's eyes widened in awe at the sight of this fantastic place. It was, without a doubt, beautiful.

"Caras Galadhon," Haldir announced proudly, beaming at the kingdom, "The heart of Elvendom on Earth. Home of Lord Yukio Mashimi, and of Lady Tang Shen, the Lady of Light."

Now that they had seen this place from a distance, most of the Fellowship was eager to see the inside of it. After Haldir said those words, he began to descend down the hill, heading towards Caras Galadhorn.

They reached Caras Galadhorn by nightfall. And when they finally entered the kingdom, they found themselves enchanted by it. There was a silvery glow to this place, casting a unique, yet amazing light on the trees. It almost felt like Rivendell, except more peaceful. Mikey could hear the sound of running water, and it made him want to just close his eyes and smile. What a relief it was to finally across a beautiful place again. Dealing with the bitter coldness of Caradhas and the dark creepiness of Moria had been more than enough for the Fellowship to handle so far. They deserved a rest.

Haldir then led them to the tallest tree within the forrest. A glimmering staircase went around the tree and up to highest and largest _talen _in Lothlórien. Slowly, the company, led by Haldir, treaded up said stairs. The beauty around them was a lot to take in. They welcomed the warm peaceful feeling in their hearts when they gazed upon it.

Raphael traced his hand along the tree, just letting his fingertips go along smooth bark. All the sadness and anger had been put away at that moment. His heart had been taken by the kingdom. It made him feel calm and focused as he felt less tense than he did before.

After a few minutes, the Fellowship finally reached the top. Haldir halted and pointed up to a smaller staircase. They all looked up, but found themselves their eyes to be blinded by a bright light, causing them to squint their eyes. But the longer they looked, the more they could see their attire. They were dressed in beautiful robes that went all the way to the ground. They could also see that one figure was a man, and the other a woman. Well, to be more specific, an Elf-man and an Elf-woman.

Donnie and Mikey bowed their heads in respect, as did Usagi and Keno. Everybody else just stared, wide-eyed. The light finally dimmed, and they could see the faces of two figures. The Elf-man had a serious, yet kind face, looking like a wise and powerful leader. They figured that he was the Lord Yukio Mashimi Haldir had mentioned earlier. The Elf-maiden was very beautiful with soft black hair that hung behind her back. She was dressed in bright white robes, her eyes soft and kind, yet had the same wisdom and seriousness. And her face was a face they would never forget. This was Lady Tang Shen.

When the rest company snapped back into reality, they remembered their manners and bowed before the two Elves. Leo had closed his eyes, but he could feel Tang Shen's eyes look at each of them. The rest of them seemed to feel that as well as they all had the urge to look up at her. They did so eventually, and when they gazed into her eyes, she smiled warmly at them.

"Welcome, travelers," Shen said in a kind voice. What she said next surprised them greatly, "Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael, Michelangelo, Casey Jones, and Christopher Bradford."

The company, with the exception of Usagi and Keno, were quite bewildered. How did she know their names?! The Elf-woman must be one of great power if she knew such things.

Mashimi then spoke to the entire Fellowship, although his voice seemed more and worried, "The enemy knows you have entered here. Whatever hope you had of secrecy is now gone."

That lowered everyone's spirits, and they looked down in dread. Leo suspected that the Shredder and Oroku Saki would expect them to enter Lothlórien, but he had hoped they wouldn't have discovered it so soon. Were they safe then? Yes, probably so. Leo figured those two wouldn't attack such a powerful place as this. Well, at least he hoped they wouldn't.

Mashimi then looked around in confusion, "Eight of you are here, yet nine there were set out from Rivendell. Tell me, where is Splinter? I very much desire to speak with him. For I can no longer see him from afar."

Usagi's expression darkened and his eyes went back down to the ground. He did not wish to speak of Splinter's whereabouts, for he didn't want anyone else to suffer the same grief the entire company was suffering. However, Shen looked at the ronin, she had already seemed to figure out what the answer was. Her eyes went wide and her expression saddened.

"Splinter has not passed the borders of this land. He has fallen into shadow." She said aloud.

Leo's eyes narrowed in curiosity. It seemed as if she had read Usagi's mind. But that was impossible... wasn't it? The Fellowship knew they couldn't keep the truth from them. Keno stepped forward and spoke for all of them.

"He was taken by both shadow and flame," The Elf said gravely, "A balrog of Morogoth, for he went needlessly into the net of Moria."

Casey lowered his head in grief at the mention of his cousin's home. The memories of those dead bodies filled his mind, the worst part being the tomb of Balin. The young dwarf leaned forward on his axe and sighed. Tang Shen and Yukio Mashimi were shocked and saddened to hear of Splinter's death, though they appeared calm. The Lady of Lorien closed her eyes, processing what she had just heard.

She finally opened her eyes again and shook her head, "Needless were none of the deeds of Splinter in his life. We do not yet know his full purpose." Her eyes then fell upon the sad dwarf and she smiled softly with pity, "Do not let the great emptiness of Khazad-dum fill your heart, Casey, son of Gloin." He looked up to her as she continued, "For the world has grown full of peril, and in all lands love is now mingled by grief."

When Shen finished saying those words, she looked over to Bradford. The Gondorian Wolf suddenly lifted his head and stared into her eyes. Leo rose an eye ridge at him. He seemed like he was struggling. But... why? The blue clad turtle saw tears begin to roll down Bradford's muzzle. The wolf began to weep and immediately turned away from the Elf. Leo exchanged a glance with his brothers, wondering what that was about. But his brothers simply shrugged, just as confused as he was.

"What now becomes of this Fellowship?" Mashimi asked the company, "Without Splinter, hope is lost."

No, Leo refused to believe that. There was always hope. That was the greatest thing Bilbo had taught him as a kid, and he wasn't going to lose hope now.

"This quest stands upon the edge of a knife," Shen said solemnly, "Stray but a little and it will fail to the ruin of all." Her expression then lightened as she looked to rest of the Fellowship, "Yet hope remains while the company is true." She smiled, "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Go now and rest, for you are weary with sorrow and much toll. Tonight, you will sleep in peace."

That indeed put their minds at ease. For a peaceful rest was what they all needed right now. Everyone was certain that the arrangements would be to their liking. They didn't care where they slept because they felt safe here.

Before they left, however, Leo noticed Tang Shen was staring directly at him.

"_Welcome, Leonardo of the Shire," _She greeted him in his mind, surprising him, "_One who has seen the eye!"_

* * *

The Fellowship had settled down in a small tent below the trees when they heard a beautiful melody fill the air. Keno stopped and looked up. Those were Elves singing alright. And it was coming from the top of the trees. The others heard it too, and just listened for a few minutes without any comment.

Keno finally recognized what it was, "It's a lament to Splinter."

Donnie rose a curious eye ridge, "What do they say about him?"

"I don't have the heart to tell you," Keno replied sadly, "For me, the grief is still too near."

The purple clad turtle didn't bother to press the question. He too agreed with the Elf, as did every member of the Fellowship. The Elves were kind enough to give this lament to Splinter, and it was very nice to listen to.

"I bet they won't mention his fireworks," Raph said quietly as he and Mikey made the beds in the tent, "They should do a verse about them."

He then stood up and began to say a verse that he made up at the top of his head, "_The finest rockets ever seen. They burst into stars of blue and green-"_

Everybody heard a loud snoring come out of nowhere, and they looked back and saw it was Casey. Usagi frowned disappointingly and slapped him awake.

"_And after that," _Raph continued, "_Silver showers...came falling like a...ray of flowers." _He then sat down and shook his head, "Oh, that doesn't do any justice at all."

After putting down his sword, which he had been sharpening with a rock, Usagi then stood up and walked around the area. None of the others asked where he was going, and instead began to relax.

Walking through the area, Usagi soon spotted Bradford sitting on a large tree root nearby. He noticed Bradford looked very stiff and uncomfortable as well. Slightly concerned, Usagi walked up to him.

"Take some rest," Usagi told him reassuringly, "These borders are well protected."

Bradford still looked ill at ease as he spoke up, "I will find no rest here," He stated, his voice shaking slightly, "I heard her voice inside my head. She spoke of my father and the fall of Gondor. She said to me 'Even now there is hope left.' But I can't see it. Its been a while since we had any hope. My father is a noble man, but his rule is failing. And now our people loose faith. He looks to me to make things right and I would do it. I would see the glory of Gondor restored." Usagi sat down next to him as Bradford continued, "Have you ever see it, Usagi?" He asked, "The White tower of Ecthelion, glimmering like a spike of pearl and silver. It's banners caught high in the morning breeze." He then turned to Usagi, "Have you ever been called home by the clear ringing of silver trumpets?" He asked.

Usagi gave a small sigh, "I have seen the White City, long ago." He replied.

Bradford nodded, "One day, our paths will lead us there. And the tower guards shall take up the call: 'The Lords of Gondor have returned!'."

**In case any of you were wondering what Casey had said earlier to Haldir, it meant "I spit on your grave!" **


	24. The Mirror of Water

Chapter 24: The Mirror of Water

While most of the company found it easy to sleep, Leonardo surprisingly found himself unable to once again. Even under the peaceful trees of Lothlórien, he still felt restless. He squirmed, tossed and turned on his mat, trying to find a comfortable spot to sleep. But it never came.

Leo would've thought that he'd be over this. He had done well with resting ever since they left Rivendell. Why was he struggling now? Was it grief? Was it the fear of leaving Lothlórien and having to face the dreaded Orcs again? No, the blue clad turtle didn't think it was any of those things. For some strange reason, he felt like something was going to happen tonight. He didn't know what, but every part of him was expecting something unexpected to happen.

He didn't know if it was good or bad. And even though he tried brushing it off, he still found himself on high alert. With an aggravated sigh, he sat up and leaned against the tree he was next to. There had to be some way to make him tired. No doubt Usagi would want to be shoving off sometime tomorrow or the following day. And Leo honestly wanted to get as much sleep as possible. One of the many downsides of this journey was the lack of rest, and stopping for only a couple hours was nowhere near good enough.

Leaning against the tree a little more, Leo closed his eyes and relaxed, listening to the calming sounds around him. He realized that the Elves had stopped singing a while ago. The forrest had fallen silent, with the exception of crickets making their usual noises during the night. He listened to the sound of running water in the distance and breathed in the fresh cool air through his nostrils. His body slowly became relaxed, and he welcomed the feeling. The only thing that Leo tried to block out was the loud snoring from Michelangelo and Casey. Unfortunately, relaxing couldn't block out _all _sounds.

However, as listened closely over Mikey and Casey's snoring, he could've sworn he heard the faint sound of footsteps. It was not coming from the camp, but it was headed this way. He could barely hear the footsteps, but he could tell it was a person. Said person was just about to turn around the corner and head towards the campsite. Leo's eyes popped open to see who it was. Curiously, he saw it was a young Elf woman who looked about his age, if not slightly older. She wore grey robes and had short black and yellow dyed hair. However, she did not seem to notice him, for her eyes were looking ahead, towards a stone corridor. Leo also noticed that she wore no shoes for some odd reason. He frowned at himself. He didn't know what the big deal was about that since he and his brothers didn't really wear shoes either.

The Elf went into the corridor and out of sight. For reasons he could not explain, Leo decided to follow her. Getting to his feet, he began to slowly follow her closely behind through the corridor. There were many twists and turns on in the path, surprisingly. Leo had gone around who knows how many, but at least the path was pleasant to walk through, not dark and mysterious as the other places he had been to were. The closer he got however, the more Leo got a strange feeling within him. This Elf was definitely not going on a midnight stroll through the woods. She was heading somewhere, somewhere that was very strong with some kind of magic, he could feel it. But he still had to wonder, where was she going?

Finally, Leo caught sight of a small open area right around the next corner. Coming around the corner, Leo looked to see the Elf had gone down a small column of stairs and into a small hollow in which a quiet stream ran to a small pool. In the middle of the area, the young turtle noticed a basin upon a curved pedestal. Behind said pedestal, stood an ewer. Leo rose a curious eye ridge, why had she come here? What was so special about this place?

Taking a deep breath and summoning his courage, Leo slowly descended down the stone stairs to the hollow, his azure eyes remaining focused on the Elf. The Elf's back was to him, and she had picked up the ewer. She then slowly walked over to the small pool and filled ewer with water. Leo, meanwhile, had already walked onto the grass and stood in front of the Elf. Finally, the Elf turned around and faced him. And when their eyes met, Leo's heart momentarily skipped a beat. Even though he knew staring was rude, he could't help but admire her beauty as he stared into her piercing amber eyes.

"Will you look into the mirror?" She suddenly asked.

Leo blinked a few times. Mirror? What Mirror? What was she talking about? Was she talking about the basin?

"..What will I see if I do?" He finally asked, now eyeing her cautiously.

She shrugged nonchalantly as a small smile came upon the her lips, "Even the wisest can't tell. For the mirror shows many things." She walked over to the pedestal and then began to pour the water from the ewer into the basin, "Things that _were_, things that _are_, and some things...that haven't yet come to pass."

Leo looked to basin, and slowly walked up to it as the Elf girl had finally poured the last few drops of water from the ewer and then took a couple steps back from the pedestal. Leo closed his eyes and took another deep breath before looking into the mirror.

At first, he saw nothing. He was just looking at water. He saw no images nor anything out of the ordinary. Maybe it wasn't working? Leo was about to let the Elf girl know when suddenly, something finally happened. The water darkened and he could now see shapes moving around. He leaned forward slightly to get a better look.

He saw his brothers, Michelangelo, Donatello, and Raphael. The image then changed and Leonardo saw his home in the Shire and the peaceful town of Bronx. But then the image changed again. It showed Bronx again, but this time, the village was burning as legions of Orcs and Foot Soldiers went around slaughtering and capturing several reptiles, much to Leo's shock and horror.

The imaged changed again and showed several reptile, including himself and his brothers, had been enslaved and put in chains as they were shipped off on large boats to who knows where, leaving the Shire in ruins.

The image finally changed to a giant lidless eye, wreathed in flame, the Eye of the Shredder. Leo's eyes widened in terror as the he stared into the eye. As he stared, he heard a dark voice speaking to him in some sort of strange language. It sounded like the black speech Splinter had used to scare Bradford back in Rivendell. But this was definitely not the Rat Wizard's voice. To make things even more creepy, the Ring seemed to be drawn to the eye as steam began to curl from the basin. The Ring seemed to have a mind of it's own as it began to drag Leo's face closer to the eye.

He couldn't take this anymore. He didn't want to see anything else. Mustering all of his strength, Leo grabbed the Ring and pulled himself away from the mirror, collapsing onto the ground, screaming in terror.

Leo panted heavily as sweat poured down his face. The Elf girl gave him a hard look, "I know what you saw," She said grimly, "For it was also in my mind."

"What was that?!" He questioned, his eyes wide and fearful as he stood up, "What did I just see?!"

"You saw things that were, things that are, and things that have not yet come to pass." A voice spoke aloud.

Leo turned his head to see Tang Shen walking down the stairs towards them. Her robes billowing in the slight breeze.

"The mirror shows many thing," She stated, "And not all have come to pass. Some never come to be unless those who behold the vision stand aside from their path to prevent them." She then smiled, "I see you have met my daughter, Karai."

Leo's jaw dropped, his eyes almost the size of dinner plates as he looked back at Karai. She was Lady Shen's daughter?! Karai couldn't help but giggle at Leo's silly (and admittedly adorable) face. Leo blushed madly in embarrassment as he scratched the back of his head.

He then looked back at the water in basin, which was no longer steaming and looked like just plain old water. His curiousness overtaking him, Leo slowly approached the basin again, slowly reaching out with his hand to feel the water. To see if it was safe now.

But before he could, Karai rushed forward and lightly grabbed his wrist, "Don't touch the water!" She warned, "_He _is looking for you."

"Indeed _he _is," Shen agreed, before turning to Leo, "But he cannot find you, not here, not yet. The door is closed."

She then raised her hand, and Leo noticed, to his surprise, that there was a ring on her finger. His eyes squinted a bit as he looked at it more closely. But then a thought came to him. His eyes slightly widened. No. Could it be...?

"This is Nenya," Tang Shen said, "The Ring of Adament. One of the three Elven rings. I am it's keeper."

She possessed another magic ring?! Leo was a bit stunned to say the least. Although he remembered the story Splinter had told him about the forging of the rings back in his home in the Shire. Yes, the One Ring was the greatest and most powerful ring ever made, but there had been other rings forged before it came along. He had never really expected to come across one of them, though.

Shen's expression remained soft, but with a tint of seriousness as she spoke, "This task was appointed to you. If your quest fails, then nothing can stand against him and we are defenseless. But if you succeed and the Ring is destroyed, all we built with the three will fade, time will come here and Lothlórien will fade." She then lowered her hand, a solemn look on her face, "You are the footstep of doom to us, Leonardo."

Leo looked down at the Ring, which was still in the palm of his hand. Would this really happen? If he destroyed the Ring, would that really spell doom for the Elves? No, no that couldn't be. It just couldn't!

"Lady Shen?" Leo asked timidly before holding out the Ring to her, "I will give you the One Ring if you ask for it."

Karai was surprised. He was willing to give her mother the Ring? Why?

Tang Shen looked just as shocked as she simply stared at the Ring.

"It's too great a matter for me." Leo continued, his voice almost pleading.

To Leo's surprise, however, both Shen and Karai simply laughed. He was confused. Why were they laughing? What was going on?

"And _we_ came to test you heart?" Karai asked teasingly as Leo lowered his arm slightly.

"You offer it to me freely," Shen exclaimed, her hand slightly shaking as she slowly reached for it, "I cannot deny that my heart has greatly desired this."

Leo felt uneasy as he watched this. A great darkness had come over the follow, and not just literally. Then, to Leo's horror, Shen changed. Her skin and cloak turned dark and her eyes had a terrifying white glow to them. Her cloak began to blow around violently, as if it was being blown by a hurricane. But what was most alarming was her voice. For instead of it being soft and kind, it was now dark and menacing.

**"In place of a dark lord, you would have a queen!"** She boomed, causing Leo to stumble back, scared half to death while Karai looked unfazed, **"Not dark but beautiful and terrible as the dawn. As treacherous as the sea! Stronger than the foundations of the earth! All shall love me and despair!"**

After a few seconds, light all of sudden returned to the hollow and the Lady of Lorien looked normal again. She stumbled back with an unsettled look on her face as Karai quickly rushed over to help her mother. Shen breathed heavily and looked away, closing her eyes as Leo's fear of her slowly dissipated.

"I passed the test." She said before standing up at full height, "I will diminish and go into the west and remain Tang Shen." She then turned to Leo, "And you must depart in the morning."

Karai then walked over to Leo, folding her arms, "This task was appointed to you. And if you don't find a way, no one will."

Leo frowned at her. What did she mean by that? Surly she was aware there was a Fellowship for a reason. They were supposed to help Leo on this quest, but it almost sounded she was wanting him to go... alone.

Leo visibly swallowed as he looked down, now understanding what they were saying, "I can't do this alone." He said sadly.

Shen looked down at him, her face relaxed but full of sympathy, "You are a Ring Bearer, Leonardo," She said, "To have a ring of power is to be alone."

Leo now began to tear up as his shoulders sank, "I know what I have to do but I don't know if I have the strength to do it." He replied, his voice shaking.

Karai gave him a comforting smile as she laid a comforting hand on his shoulder, "Even the smallest person can change the course of history."

Leo blushed bright red, causing both Karai and Tang Shen to giggle.

His courage restored, Leo's face hardened as he clutched the Ring in his hand before placing back in his pocket.

"Thank you, my lady. I needed that." Leo then bowed to her before leaving.

As Leo walked away, Tang Shen turned towards her daughter, "I can tell you like him." She said with a small smirk.

Karai blushed heavily but didn't deny it as she walked away, leaving Shen to herself.

_"Ah, young love."_ She thought.

* * *

_Isengard_

"Do you know how the Orcs came into being?" Oroku Saki asked.

In his chamber with him was a new Uruk-hai. It's skin looked a sickly shade of blue in the dark light. It just stood there, motionless but growling. Saki had heard rumors that these creatures were more powerful than the common Orc. And now, those rumors were proven correct. These were the perfect soldiers for the coming war.

"They were Elves once," Saki continued with a sneer, walking around the Uruk, "Taken by dark powers. Tortured and mutilated. A ruined and terrible form of life. And now..._perfected_: my fighting Uruk-hai." He then stopped and bent his head closer to the creature, "Whom do you serve?" He demanded.

"Saki!" The Uruk growled.

The White Wizard nodded, "Then ready your forces. For I have a task for you."


	25. Down the Anduin

Chapter 25: Down the Anduin

_Pits of Isengard_

It was time.

Months of hard work was about to be unleashed. The Uruk-hai were ready to serve Mordor and the Dark Lord Shredder. Even though more were still being created, the ones that were finished were being armed. They were given unusually shaped swords, cold steel armor, and had the white hand of Saki painted on some of their armor.

Oroku Saki strode up a wooden ramp, overlooking his army. The White Wizard peered down at the Uruks as they themselves. Roars could be heard from the crowd below as Saki could feel their eagerness, their bloodlust, their savagery.

Good.

He also knew the Fellowship was at a disadvantage since Splinter had fallen into the Khazad-dum with the Balrog. Without the wizard's help, they were weakened. However, that did not mean it would be an easy victory. One of the Uruks stood by his side as he still gazed down at the army.

"Hunt them down!" Saki snarled down at the Uruks, "Do not stop until they are found! You do not know pain. You do not know fear. You will taste flesh!"

The Uruks roared out in triumph, gnashing their disfigured teeth and holding their swords up in the air.

Saki then turned to the Uruk leader, now named Lurtz, "One of the Turtles carries something of great value," He said, his voice quiet, "Bring them to me alive, and _unspoiled._"

The Lurtz looked down in disappointment, but then lightened up a bit after the wizard's next words.

"_Kill _the others."

The creature wasted no time going down and preparing his troops to leave. After which, they then turned to the ramp that led towards the surface. The sky was blocked by the smoke rising from all around Isengard. However, the land that had not yet faced the power of Mordor would face it very very soon. And before they knew what was happening, it would be too late.

With one final snarl, the Uruk leader ran up the ramp with the rest his army following suite. Their boots stomped hard against the heavy wooden ground beneath them until they finally reached the land above.

Fresh air filled their disfigured noses as they rushed out of the gates of Isengard. Lurtz's gaze shifted to his right, where giant hills were covered by thousands of trees that made up the forrest of Fangorn. He, they looked to the land beyond that. Somewhere out there was the Woods of Lothlórien.

Where their prey awaited.

* * *

_Lothlórien_

A pity is was indeed to leave the beautiful city of Caras Galadhon. Despite the strange feeling it had given most of the Fellowship, it had still been a peaceful place that they very much enjoyed. But as Leonardo predicted, Usagi wanted to set out as soon as possible. They had a good breakfast, but right after that, the company found themselves packing their bags and following an Elf escort outside.

They did not go out the way they came in. Instead, the company was escorted to a large river, where boats had already been set for them. The Fellowship was surprised to find they'd be taking boats for this part of the journey, but Usagi had explained that Mashimi thought it was necessary for them to do so. The river was called the Anduin, according to the Elves. It went on for miles and miles, which that the journey would take a couple days.

Donatello wasn't sure how to feel about this. For he was usually pretty nervous about sailing. Now true, he did navigate the raft from Buckleburry Ferry to get him and his brothers to Bree, but it was only because he was more afraid of the Foot Elite than getting on a boat.

The Fellowship didn't get into their boats yet, for in the distance, they saw another boat approaching. It was carved in the likeness of a swan. The closer they got, the more easy it was for them to see that it carried Lady Shen. The Elf wore a smooth white cloak, with a hood resting lightly on her head. Her husband and her daughter, Mashimi and Karai, were also approaching, followed by a party of Elves. The company eyed them curiously because, in their hands, they carried small little objects that looked like leafs as well as a couple of green Elven cloaks.

When Tang Shen set foot on the shore, they were instructed to stand in a straight line. To their surprise, the Elves presented the cloaks to them like gifts. Taking the cloaks and putting them on, they were quite astonished with how soft they felt. Donnie suspected that the Elves must have made them recently for the company. Their hosts stepped forward and placed the leaves on the cloaks. Donnie looked down at the leaf on his cloak with a raised eye ridge, wondering what they were for.

"Never before have we clad strangers in the garb of our own people," Mashimi said to the Fellowship, "May these cloaks help shield you from unfriendly eyes."

Donnie looked down and admired the beautiful fabric, as did his brothers. From the looks of things, the Fellowship assumed that was it and they would be on their way. However, Tang Shen rose her hand for them to stop. She then told them that she wished to present them with gifts to help them on their journey. Now normally, a guest would decline this offer, but for some reason, none of the company could deny her request. Not even Casey, who was supposed to _hate _Elves. And so, the Lady of Lorien went to each of them and presented them with their gifts.

She went to Keno first, presenting him with a beautiful bow.

"My gift to you, Keno," She said to him, "It is the bow of Galadhrim, worthy of the skill of our woodland kin."

The young Elf stared at the bow in awe and pulled it out, testing it's strength. Shen smiled and then turned to Donatello and Michelangelo. To them, she presented two items. One was a bo staff made out smooth but sturdy wood with Donnie discovering a naginata blade concealed inside of it. And the other was a pair of nunchaku which were made of strong metal, but felt surprisingly light when Mikey held it.

"For Donatello, you have the staff of Oakenshield. For Michelangelo, you have the nunchaku of Noldorin." Shen explained, "May they serve you well, for they have already seen service in war."

Both turtles admired their new weapons and studied them. However, Shen could see the nervous expression on Mikey's face. She knelt down and place a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Do not fear, young Michelangelo," Shen said softly, putting a hand under his chin and raising his head, "You will find your courage."

Mikey smiled lightly at her before embracing her tightly. Shen returned the embrace before releasing and moving on to Raphael. Leo noticed Mikey was shaking a tad bit. He actually understood how he was feeling, because he was a little shaky as well. For reasons he couldn't quite understand, there was something about the Lady of Lorien that made him feel relaxed. She just had that face of comfort. Then again, Leo remembered the little incident from last night when she went basically crazy in front of him. He continued to reassure himself, though, that had been a test she passed.

Shen walked over to Raph, presenting him with a long silver looking rope.

"And for you, Raphael: elven rope, made of hithlain." She said.

Raph grabbed it with both hands and bowed shyly, "Thank you, my lady." He paused for a moment and glanced at the weapons Donnie and Mikey were holding before looking back to her, "Don't suppose you've run out of fancy weapons?"

Tang Shen smiled amusingly at him while Raph lowered his head, feeling a bit guilty for asking the question. He didn't want to sound ungrateful. Shen seemed to notice this as she softly patted him on the shoulder, assuring that all was forgiven before walking to the next person.

Beside Raph, Casey stiffened, knowing he would be next. When he saw the Elf coming towards him, he lowered his head and stared at the ground. Tang Shen looked down at him, her expression unreadable.

"And what would a Dwarf ask of the Elves?" She questioned, no anger or annoyance in her voice.

"Nothin'." Casey immediately replied, shaking his head. But then a change came over him and he looked up at her with complete admiration, "Except to look at the Lady of the Galadhrim one last time, for she's totally more fair than all the jewels beneath the earth."

The young dwarf received tons of surprised glances from the company. Had he actually given an Elf a compliment?! They never thought they'd see the day. Casey, like all the others, looked enchanted by the Lady of Lorien. When Shen heard him, she lightly giggled, seeming really flattered by his words. Casey's face immediately turned red and he turned to leave, but then stopped. Once again, his expression changed and he turned back to her.

"Actually, uh," He stuttered, looking a little embarrassed, "There is one thing- ah, agh, that's quite impossible to ask. Stupid to ask."

Tang Shen just smiled and laughed, "What is it, dear friend, that you wish to have?"

The Turtles couldn't wait to hear this. They had no idea what Casey was planning to ask, but if it had him this worked up, then it'd probably be something that would make everyone burst out laughing. But the young dwarf's next words actually surprised them all.

Confidence came across Casey's face, "If I may, my lady, I'd like to ask you for one hair from your golden head."

It was a strange request, sure. Yet, Shen didn't seem to mind. She smiled down at the young dwarf and then pulled out three strands of her hair, giving them to him. Casey took them and carefully placed them in one of his pockets. Leo couldn't help but have a small smile as well. It was moments like these that gave him hope that maybe there was a chance that the rivalry between Dwarves and Elves would come to an end.

Usagi was the next person Tang Shen came up to. But she didn't present any gifts this time. Instead, she traced her hand along the necklace the ronin had around his neck.

"I have nothing greater to give you than the gift you already bear." She said, her face saddening,_ "For her love, I fear the grace of Tomoe Ame evenstar will diminish." _She then said to him in Elvish.

_"I would have her leave these shores and be with her people." _Usagi replied in Elvish, his expression both regret and satisfaction, _"I would have her take the ship to Valinor."_

Tang Shen nodded before speaking in English again, "That choice is yet before her." She gave the Rabbit Ronin a hard stare, "You have your own choice to make, Usagi: To rise above the height of all of your fathers since the day Elendil, or fall into darkness with all that is left of your kin."

Both fell silent for a moment, but then Shen looked back down at the necklace and smiled, speaking in Elvish once again, _"There is so much you have left to do," _She said, placing a hand on his cheek, _"We will not meet again, Elessar."_

And finally, the last person Tang Shen gave a gift to was Leo himself. She handed the blue clad turtle a crystalline vessel that was shaped like a tear drop. It was filled with clear water and a shining light. Leo didn't know what it was for, but it looked beautiful all the same.

"Farewell, Leonardo," She said, "I give you the light Earandil, our most beloved star. May it be a light for you, in dark places, when all other lights go out."

Then, the Lady of Lorien bent down and gently kissed Leo on the forehead.

Karai then walked over to him, "Remember, Leo," She said, "Be strong, and be brave." She then leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. Leo's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as his face turned bright red, causing Karai to giggle a little.

Tang Shen gazed at all the Fellowship one last time and smiled. They knew she would not see them off, which was kinda disappointing for some of them. Without a word, they all bowed once more, thanking her for the gifts. She nodded in return and then began to slowly turn away. As Leo watched her leave, he wondered if he would ever see her again. It was a pity that they couldn't have someone like her with them to guide them on their journey. But Leo also knew this wasn't her quest. It was theirs. And they'd would have to work together to see it through. Hard times were coming, and difficult decisions along with them.

And Leo promised himself that he and his brothers would survive all of it.

* * *

The time had come once again to leave yet another beautiful Elven city. With their gifts in hand, the Fellowship of the Ring began to prepare to shove off. They found extra supplies waiting for them, most likely food and water.

There wasn't really much the Turtles could do to help, so they just sat in the boats and watched their companions load up the stuff. Raphael almost lost his balance when he got into one of the boats, but fortunately grabbed onto both sides until it stopped rocking. Leonardo joined him afterwards, still not saying much to his brothers or companions.

Their older brother's silence was really starting to worry Raph, Donnie, and Mikey. He had mostly been like this nonstop since they had left Moria. After Splinter's fall, Leo seemed to be really distancing himself to _all _of them lately, even his own family, which only added to their concern.

Usagi did not help load the supplies, and instead could be seen talking to Mashimi a good distance away.

"Every league you travel south, the danger will increase." Mashimi told him, a look of urgency in his eyes as he talked to the ronin, "Mordor Orcs now hold the eastern shore of Anduin. Nor will you find safety on the western bank. Strange creatures bearing the white hand have been seen on our borders. Seldom do Orcs journey in the open under the sun, yet these have done so." He then handed Usagi an ugly looking dagger, _"You are being tracked." _He said in Elvish before speaking basic again, "By the river you have the chance of outrunning the enemy to the Falls of Rauros."

Usagi nodded before returning to the others.

Michelangelo and Donatello were still admiring their new weapons when Keno came down and loaded something onto the boat. The young Elf reached into the bag and pulled out what looked like some sort of bread wrapped in a leaf, "Lembas," Keno said to them, holding one out for the two turtles to see, "One small bite is enough to fill the stomach of a grown man."

Donnie and Mikey just nodded at the Elf, appearing to be interested. However, when Keno walked off to help Casey get into one of the boats, Donnie leaned close to his brother.

"How many did you eat?" He asked in a whisper.

"Four." Mikey replied, suddenly belching loudly right after he said that.

When Usagi finally returned as well, it was time to get going. The company split into pairs of two or three for each boat. Leo and Raph were with Usagi, Donnie and Mikey were with Bradford, and Casey was with Keno. Once everyone was situated, one of the passengers from each boat grabbed the oars and slowly began to row.

They were slow at first, for they looked around the woods of Lothlórien one last time, and hated to bid it farewell. They would miss this place, for it had returned some of the happiness that they had lost when Splinter fell in Moria. And of course, each of then had thought of the Lady Shen, thinking back to when she had given them the gifts.

Before they were completely gone from the woods, Leo felt like someone was watching them leave. He looked around and stopped when he saw Karai herself hiding behind one of the trees. He didn't know how to react, for he couldn't tell if she was looking at him or not. But then the daughter of the Lady of Lorien rose her hand, bidding one final farewell. Yes, she was looking at him. Leo didn't know how he knew this, but he just did. His only response was simply smiling at him. The sun suddenly came out and shined into his eyes. When a branch finally blocked it, he looked for Karai again, but found that she was nowhere to be seen. He didn't try to look harder, because he knew that had been her last goodbye. Which saddened him bit, as he had actually developed a crush on her, though he knew that it wouldn't work out.

And thus began the journey down the Anduin river.

Not much was said from anybody, except for a couple directions from Usagi on where exactly they were going. The ronin was at the front of the group, with everybody else kind of spread out along the river behind him. Everybody rowed at a steady pace, not too slow and not too fast either. They all seemed lost in their own thoughts as the silence continued.

Now that they were out of Lothlórien, a whole lot more worries started to come back to the company. Usagi said he knew the path to Mordor, but some of them were beginning to wonder how they would get past its gates without being seen. Bradford had even said that there were things that didn't sleep, and _always _watched the gate. Shredder was probably one of those things.

* * *

It was another long day, and the Fellowship finally found a good piece of land where they could stop and rest for the night. The sun was almost down when the company set foot on dry land.

They lit a small fire that night, but made sure not to let it go too bright. Usagi had said they were getting close to the territory where Orcs would be patrolling the shores. But the Fellowship could care less about Orcs at this time of day. They were hungry and were ready to sleep. Raphael cooked what little meat they had left and offered as much as he could to the others.

Usagi and Keno didn't take any meat, instead taking a bite of some Lembas bread. Leonardo didn't eat anything as he just sat there, leaning against a large stone and staring off into the distance. This of course, bugged Raph.

"Have some food, Leo." Raph told him, holding out a small plate of meat.

Leo just pushed away the plate, "No thanks, Raph."

"You haven't eaten anything all day and your barely sleeping." Raph said, not backing down, "Don't think we haven't noticed, Leo."

"I said I'm fine." Leo replied, not even bothering to face his brother.

"No, your not." Raph stated firmly. His face then softened as he laid a hand on Leo's shoulder, "I'm here to help you, bro. I promised Splinter I would."

Leo didn't reply immediately as he turned his head to fully face Raph, his face full of sadness, "You can't help me, Raph. Not this time." Leo said solemnly.

Raph was taken aback by this before he finally let up and decided to get some sleep.

Earlier on, before the company had stopped for the night, Bradford had had a strange feeling that they were being followed. When he went to investigate, he thought he could see, far behind them, a lone log floating along the river. Coincidently, it had kept up with them for the rest of the day.

Standing behind on the riverbank, behind a large stone, Bradford peered suspiciously at the log. For it had finally come to their campsite. He sniffed the air with his snout, catching a rather foul stench coming from the log, though he couldn't quite pinpoint what it was. It wasn't a goblin and it definitely wasn't an orc since they smelled far worse. But as the log drifted closer, he could see two thin sickly green arms rowing it.

"Gollum." Usagi explained, walking up beside Bradford, "He has tracked us since Moria."

Bradford frowned. He remembered listening to Splinter conversation with Leo about Gollum back in Moria. He couldn't see the creature too well, but he was able to make out the top of his head and his arms. Bradford could also hear Gollum hissing at them as his two big bulgy eyes poked out from behind the log. Bradford quickly noticed that his hand had subconsciously gone down for his sword. That thing seriously gave him the creeps, and that was saying a lot coming from him.

Usagi shook his head, "I had hoped we would lose him on the river, but he is too clever a waterman."

"If he alerts the enemy of our whereabouts," Bradford murmured, "It'll make crossing even more dangerous." He then turned back to Usagi, "Minas Tirith is the safer way," The Gondorian Wolf insisted, "You that. From there we can regroup... strike out for Mordor from a place of strength."

Usagi shook his head, "There is no strength in Gondor that can avail us."

"You were quick enough to trust the Elves," Bradford countered, "Have you so little faith in your own people?"

No one at the camp said anything as they watched as listened to the heated argument between the Rabbit Ronin and the Gondorian Wolf.

"Yes, there is weakness. There is frailty. But there is also courage and honor found in Mortals." Bradford continued, "But you will not see that."

Usagi made a move to turn away, but without warning Bradford seized him by the arm and pulled him back. Everybody stared on, wide-eyed at the Gondorian Wolf's sudden anger.

"You're afraid!" Bradford shouted furiously, "All your life, you've hidden in the shadows! Scared of who you are, what you are!"

The rest of the company still stared at the two of them as they continued arguing. What had gotten into Bradford? Why was he saying all of this now?

"Your supposed to be our king." Bradford told Usagi, disgust in his voice, "You have no right to be king. Your nothing but a coward!"

The ronin looked to be turning away, but then suddenly turned back to Bradford, "I will not lead the Ring within a hundred leagues of your city!" Usagi replied harshly.

Usagi and Bradford glared at each other, their eyes full of hatred.

The was quite surprised at the sudden heated argument between them, while also taking note that now was probably a good time to go to sleep. Hopefully, this argument would be resolved in the morning.


	26. Tempting of the Mind

Chapter 26: Tempting of the Mind

When morning came, the Fellowship again got up rather early that morning and once again had a very short breakfast. Hardly anyone was hungry that morning, with the Turtles having the least appetite, which was unusual coming from them since they would often eat big meals back in the Shire.

The Shire.

That felt like it had been so long ago. The four brothers could barely remembered what a soft bed felt like. They had become used to the cold hard ground. On top of that, it was also hard to get over the fact that they had been gone for many months now.

When the rest of the Fellowship finished their breakfast, Usagi immediately said that they had to go. Though they were still tired, they reluctantly got up, packed their supplies, and began to float down the river again. Some of them, especially Leonardo, were surprised to see no sign of the creature Gollum. Maybe he had scurried off or something rather. Whatever the case, Leo was glad the creature was nowhere to be seen. It was one less thing to worry about during this little trip. Unfortunately, there was still a huge horde of Uruk-hai after them, so they had to keep moving.

After hours of drifting further down the river, they saw something that made them stare in awe, especially Bradford. On both sides of the river, there stood two giant stone statues. They seemed to look like ancient kings, who stood proudly on both sides of the Anduin. Their left hands were held aloft, their palms facing outward in a gesture of warning.

"The Aragonath!" Usagi murmured in admiration, "Long have I desired to look upon the kings of old. My kin."

The Fellowship couldn't believe the size of those statues. How long did it take them to build such things?! Casey, who had a high appreciation of stone art, had a huge giddy smile on his face as he gazed upon the statues. He wished he could just hop out of the boat and touch them. This great architecture almost rivaled his own kin!

As the company floated in between the huge stone feet, they could see up ahead that their journey on the boats was about to come to an end as a huge waterfall was visible in the distance. Usagi wasn't so crazy as to lead them down it, that would most definitely be suicide.

Usagi glanced back at the statues one last time, giving a ghost of a smile as they passed. Even if it had taken over a thousand years to build, those statues were an impressive sight to see. At least this day had shown _something _amazing. For there hadn't been much to see since they had left Lothlórien.

The Fellowship spotted a gravel beach to their left and Usagi figured it'd be the best place to set foot on land. Once they landed on the beach, they slowly began to disembark boats, setting up a small temporary camp.

However, Leo remained sitting in his boat, looking behind him from the corner of his eye. Bradford was sitting next to him, looking troubled, appearing to be fighting a conflict within him, making Leo slightly nervous. However, after a couple seconds, Bradford exhaled and lowered his head. It did not ease the blue clad turtles nerves, though.

Even though the day was far from over, the second journey in the boats had felt rather long for a majority of the Fellowship. They were indeed very hungry and eager to rest for a while before beginning another journey on foot.

* * *

Some members of the Fellowship had never expected this, but it had come at last. Michelangelo, and Casey sadly watched as Raphael cooked the last of the food he had brought with him over a small fire. All three of them knew that this would probably be the last _real _meal they would have for a while. Then it'd be Lembas bread for who knows how long. It didn't taste bad by any means, but the Fellowship knew it would eventually get old.

Keno had walked over to the forest by the beach, just staring at it with a concerned look on his face. Usagi, meanwhile, walked up to the others and set down one of the bags from his boat. He then made sure he got the company's attention.

"We cross the lake by nightfall," The ronin told them, "Hide the boats and continue on foot. We approach Mordor from the north."

"Oh yeah?!" Casey huffed, sitting down on a nearby log, "It's just the simple thing of finding our way through Emyn Muil! An impassible maze of _razer sharp _rocks! And after that, it gets even better!"

Raph and Mikey looked at the dwarf in alarm. They weren't sure if they were ready to hear this one.

"Gross, stinking marshlands," Casey continued, "As far as the eye can see!"

The two turtles immediately groaned. Not another marsh!

"_That _is our road," Usagi replied, looking down at the young dwarf, "I suggest you take some rest and recover your strength, Master Dwarf."

"Recover my-?!" Casey sputtered, but then thought against it.

Knowing it would do no good to argue, the young dwarf reluctantly began to set up his mat, "No dwarf needs to recover their strength." He quietly grumbled to himself.

Keno finally turned away from the forest, walking over to Usagi, "We should leave now." He stated, his voice nervous.

"No," Usagi replied, shaking his head, "Orcs patrol the eastern shore. We must wait for cover of darkness."

"It's not the eastern shore that worries me," Keno told him, "A shadow and a threat has been growing in my mind." He then glanced back at the woods, "Something draws near, I can feel it."

Just then, Donatello, who had gone into the forest to get some more wood for the fire, had returned with a huge supply. However, as he was putting some of the wood into the fire, he looked around and rose an eye ridge.

"Hey, guys, where's Leo?" Donnie asked.

The company immediately looked over at him when he said that and then looked around the campsite. The others frowned worriedly. Donnie was right, where was Leo? Raph quickly jumped to his feet and started to panic. And he wasn't the only one as Mikey quickly followed suite.

The Ring Bearer was nowhere to be seen! But then Usagi saw that there was a Gondorian shield laying against the tree, and it's owner was nowhere to be found. It seemed that Bradford was missing too, which deeply disturbed the ronin.

In short, he had a very bad feeling about this.

* * *

Deep down, Leonardo wished he didn't have to do this, but he knew it couldn't be helped. The young turtle had been traveling with the Fellowship for so long now, and he had always felt several stares in his direction. What scared him the most was that he couldn't figure out what they were thinking. Had they simply been looking at him or... was it something else?

Leo had a feeling that he knew what it was. His hand slowly went to his chest and he clutched the small little jewel below his shirt. The closer they got to Mordor, the heavier the Ring seemed to get. Leo found himself addicted to it more and more, but at the same time it felt like such a burden to carry. But that was the whole point, wasn't it? He was the Ring Bearer. He had sworn to take the Ring to Mordor and cast it into the fires of Mount Doom.

However, what the rest of the Fellowship _didn't _know was that he had to do it alone. He had learned that, in fact. As much as it pained him, Leo had to make this journey himself, for the task was appointed to him. He was, of course, thankful to the others for their help, but it was time for him to set off without them. How would he explain this to them, though?

Part of him was also afraid that the Ring was starting to take hold of them, especially _one _of them. Words that Tang Shen had said to him had begun to flood his mind, continuing to make him feel uneasy.

_"The Fellowship is breaking. It has already begun. He will try to take the Ring. You know of whom I speak. One by one, it will destroy them all."_

That was why he had to go as well. He knew, in his heart, that Shen spoke the truth. The Ring _would _destroy his friends, and it'd corrupt them so much that he was afraid they'd turn into people he didn't recognize. Leo knew he couldn't live with that. He'd have to make it up to them when (and if) he returned from Mordor.

The blue clad turtle wondered deeper into the forest, until he came across an immense stone head, long aged and lost from it's body, lying with its side in the ground. But suddenly, before Leo could look at it more, he heard a noise from behind and quickly turned around. He body froze when he saw Bradford walking about, gathering wood.

"None of us should wander alone," The Gondorian Wolf remarked, "You least of all. So much depends on you."

Leo didn't respond, and just stared at him. He could feel his heart pounding violently as he became more nervous by the minute.

Bradford looked at him and tilted his head, "Leonardo?"

Still, the turtle did not respond, and made sure to keep his distance from the Gondorian. The wolf, however, didn't seem to notice.

"I know why you seek solitude," Bradford then said, his expression showing that of pity, "You suffer. I see it day by day. You sure you don't suffer needlessly?" He waited for a moment to see if the terrapin would respond, but when he didn't, he continued, "There are other ways, Leonardo, other paths that we might take."

"I know what you would say," Leo finally replied, staying as far away from the Gondorian Wolf as he could, "And it would seem like wisdom but for the warning in my heart."

Bradford let out a small laugh and looked at him confusedly, "Warning? Against what?" He tried to move closer to Leo, but he just moved back. The turtle had a hunch that the Gondorian knew exactly what he was talking about. However, it was quite obvious that the wolf did not care. Leo could see the desperation in his eyes, and that only increased his fears.

He knew Bradford wanted the Ring brought to Gondor, and that Usagi would never allow that. But part of Leo wondered how far this wolf would go to get what he wanted. It didn't look like he was going to be leaving him anytime soon.

"We're all afraid, Leonardo," Bradford continued, a slight hint of eagerness in his voice, "But to let that fear drive us to destroy what hope we have..." He shook his head hopelessly, "Don't you see, that is madness?"

"There's no other way!" Leo said boldly, trying to get it through the Gondorian Wolf's head.

However, that did little good. The turtle saw Bradford's expression change to that of frustration. He jerked his head down to the ground and breathed heavily. He knew the terrapin wasn't going to go along with his plan, no matter how hard he tried to convince him. Yet, he didn't give up.

"I only ask for the strength to defend my _people_!" He snapped, throwing down the pile of wood.

Leo didn't know what to do. He could tell the Ring was taking over Bradford. There was no proof of that, but it was perfectly clear that that was so. Why else would the Gondorian be obsessed about this?

Bradford held out his hand desperately, "If you would just lend me the Ring-"

"No!" Leo answered, stepping back.

"Why do you recoil?" The Gondorian Wolf asked, a sour look on his face, "I am no thief."

Leo shook his head, "Your not yourself!"

Little good that did. Bradford's expression just became angrier and angrier. Every second the turtle was here with him, the Gondorian Wolf became less friendly. But what could he do? Leo was afraid of what could happen if he made the slightest move.

"What chance do you think you have?" Bradford finally demanded bitterly, "They will find you. They will _take _the Ring, and you will beg for death before the end!"

Leo couldn't deal with this anymore. He was afraid and ready to get out of the forest. Without replying to Bradford, the blue clad turtle turned around and began to walk away. Unfortunately, that proved to be a bad move on Leo's part, because the Gondorian suddenly began to march after him.

"You fool!" The wolf snarled.

Leo began to run, the Gondorian was right behind him. He didn't get very far because the wolf then grabbed him by the leg and forced him down onto the ground. Bradford then got on top of him and tried to grab the Ring. Leo now saw complete pure hatred in his eyes.

"It is not yours, save by unhappy chance," Bradford spat, "It could have been mine! _It should have been mine_!" His attempts to grab it became more harsh, and he began strangling the turtle like a madman, "_Give it to me!_" He shouted.

Leo grabbed the Ring and held it tight in the palm of his hand. He tried to fight back, but Bradford was far stronger than him. However, the turtle realized that there was a small part of him that didn't want the wolf to have the Ring, but for selfish reasons. He felt like it belonged to him and him alone.

Bradford tried to grab the hand which held the Ring, but Leo kept it beneath his shell and out of the wolf's reach. The look in the Gondorian's eyes turned more into that of insanity. He wasn't going to stop until he had it. As of right now, Leo could only guess that Bradford didn't care if he killed him or not to get the Ring. If this kept up, the turtle _would_ be dead.

"_Give it to me!_" Bradford yelled.

Leo shook his head, struggling to hold onto the Ring, "No!" He then pulled the hand that held the Ring out from behind his shell and quickly slipped the Ring onto his finger, resulting in him disappearing from view.

Bradford was confused before he felt something kick him away before saw patches of leafs fly up like footsteps as they went further and further away from him.

Bradford quickly stood up and looked around furiously for Leo, stumbling a bit as scoured the hill, "I see your mind," Bradford growled as he looked around desperately, obviously talking to the now invisible Leo, "You will take the Ring to Shredder! You will betray us! You'll go to your death and the death of us all! Curse you! _Curse you_ _a__nd all reptiles!_" He then slipped on the wet leaves, resulting in him falling and hitting his head on the ground.

Shakily getting up, Bradford looked around, the madness in his eyes gone, "Leonardo?" Bradford finally whispered, complete regret in his voice, "Leonardo?" He put his shaking hand on his forehead, "W-what have I done?" He stuttered as he regained his senses. His eyes began to widen more as he realized his actions and what might've caused.

"Leonardo, I'm sorry!" He shouted, "Leonardo!"

* * *

_Bradford's cries went unheard as Leo ran towards an old abandoned structure, not even noticing that putting the Ring on had just doomed him and the others. However, he didn't care about that at the moment, he just wanted to get away from Bradford. _

_Rushing up the stairs of the structure and hiding behind one of its walls, Leo breathed heavily as he tried to get and hold of himself. However, over the loud wisps coming from this distorted world, he could hear the sound of a low rumbling._

_Though hesitant, Leo cautiously peered over the wall. And what he saw scared him to the core._

_In front of him was a tower that looked quite similar the to the tower of Orthanc, but much more scary and somewhat demonic. And at the top of it, there was a giant lidless eye, wreathed in fire as it stared into Leo's soul. The same eye he had seen in the mirror of water back in Lothlórien. The same eye he had seen when he first put on the Ring in the Prancing Pony back in Bree. It had now come back to haunt him._

_Frightened out of his mind, Leo stumbled back, falling off the structure as he quickly pulled the Ring off his finger. _

Coming back to reality, Leo landed hard on his shell as he hit the ground. Brushing the pines off his cloak, Leo sat up and looked at the structure, giving a small sigh of relief.

"Leonardo?"

Leo immediately jumped to his feet in alarm and whirled around to see Usagi staring at him. When Usagi had noticed Leo and Bradford were gone from the camp, he and the rest of the Fellowship had gone out to search for them. Usagi was glad to have found Leo, but something about the young turtle's expression bothered him. Why was he so afraid?

"It has taken Bradford." Leo finally said fearfully.

Usagi raised a brow, what was he talking about? What had happened to Bradford?

"Leonardo, where is the Ring?" Usagi questioned, stepping towards Leo.

"Stay back!" Leo warned, his voice indicating that he was terrified.

Usagi was taken aback by the turtle's sudden behavior. Leo had never acted this scared before, except when he had to deal with the Foot Elite so many months ago. What was going on? Had something happened?

"Leonardo, I swore to protect you." Usagi said, holding up his hands in a calming gesture.

"Can you protect me from yourself?!" Leo countered.

Before Usagi could reply, Leo opened up his right hand. The ronin stopped and stared when he saw the Ring resting in the turtle's palm. Usagi almost seemed to be in a trance as he looked at it. Leo looked down at it too, although he was more used to the power unlike Usagi.

Leo looked back up the ronin, "Would _you _destroy it?" He asked.

After a long moment of silence, Usagi knelt down in front of him, his eyes resting on the Ring, he could hear the black speech of Mordor flooding into his head. He reached out his hand, as if he were about to take it. However, the ronin appeared to change his mind and instead closed the turtle's fist, covering the Ring. He knew what Leo was about to do, and he accepted it.

"I would have gone with you to the end," Usagi said to him softly, "Into the very fires of Mordor."

Leo looked at the ronin sadly, "I know." He replied. His eyes began to water a bit, "Look after the others," He told the ronin, "Especially my brothers. They won't understand."

Usagi nodded understandingly. But before he could say anything, he looked down at Leo's belt and frowned. Suddenly, the Rabbit Ronin rose to his feet in alarm and drew out his katana.

"Go, Leonardo!" He ordered.

Leo looked down to his belt, and his face went pale. He slightly pulled out his sword, Sting, and saw that it was glowing blue! That meant-!

"Run." Usagi said quickly, "Run!"

Leo didn't need to be told twice as he immediately ran down the hill and out of sight. Usagi went the opposite way as he slowly walked around the structure and into a wide open area of forest. The first thing Usagi spotted was a large party of Orcs rushing towards him.

Usagi held his sword at the ready, as he knew things had just gotten worse.

_Much _worse.


	27. A New Path

**This is it guys! The Final Chapter! Hope you enjoy!**

Chapter 27: A new path

Within the next few seconds, the huge Orcs charged towards the Rabbit Ronin, roaring and lifting their swords in the air. Usagi dodged a swing before decapitating an Orc. He then blocked another blow with his katana and then ran it through the Orc's chest.

After slaying several more Orcs, Usagi felt he was already beginning to tire, which was a bad time as more and more Orcs kept coming his way. But he shrugged off his weariness as his main concern at the moment was making sure the enemy didn't catch up with Leonardo.

Yes, although he had no clue as to why they were here, he suspected that it was possibly for the Ring Bearer. And he couldn't allow them to get him. However, Usagi was soon being overwhelmed as more of the larger Orcs were coming. With the amount of foes becoming too great for him, Usagi was forced up the stairs of the stone structure. The moment he reached the top, the ronin held his position and slashed at as many Orcs as he could.

Usagi noticed one of the Orcs bared the white hand of Oroku Saki. Usagi cursed under his breath. So it was Saki who had sent this party. Brilliant. And without Splinter to help them, the Rabbit Ronin feared the White Wizard would become a huge problem. Perhaps he had learned of Splinter's death and thought this was a great opportunity to strike.

* * *

"Leo, where are you?!" Raphael called out as he searched for his missing brother. Where could he be?! Raph was now on the verge of panic when he heard the sound of swords clashing.

Turning to the direction of the sounds, Raph quickly made his over there, hoping to find Leo.

* * *

As he continued fighting off the enemy, Usagi also noticed one of the Uruk-hai looking around the forest. If he had to guess, that was probably the leader of the group. This Uruk looked like a leader, and that wasn't a compliment. He seemed more bigger and intimidating than the rest.

"Find the Terrapins!" The Uruk leader barked to his soldiers, "Find the Terrapins!"

Oh no, that was not good news in the slightest. And once the Uruk-hai heard the order, a great majority of them left the structure and began going down into the forest. It appeared that Saki was after _all _of the Turtles. Why? Usagi could only guess. But one thing was for sure, he couldn't let them find the Turtles.

Usagi suddenly leaped off the platform, shouting, "_Elendil!_", and landed on top of one of the Orcs, stabbing it in the back. Another Orc tried to kill him while he was down, but Usagi impaled the Orc through the throat before jumping to his feet and decapitating another.

The ronin looked back up the hill and grimaced. He was holding his own just fine, but the enemy's numbers were too great! he wasn't sure if he could last much longer. Thankfully, luck was on his side as Keno and Casey rushed in, joining the fight.

Keno shot several arrows at the Orcs while Casey threw a knife into an Orcs chest before hitting another one in the stomach with his axe and then decapitating another.

"Usagi, go!" Keno told him as he took out a knife and stabbed an Orc before shooting another.

The ronin reluctantly complied as he ran down the hill after the other Orcs , leaving Casey and Keno to fight the remaining Orcs.

* * *

When Donatello and Michelangelo had been told to hide, they did so without hesitation or question. Especially after they saw huge Orcs running past them. They had no idea where Keno and Casey had gone, and they definitely didn't know where these creatures had come from. All they had heard from their two companions was the word 'hide', and that's exactly what they did.

The two turtles had hidden themselves behind a huge log, and it proved to be useful. None of the Orcs running past them had spotted them. Nevertheless, Donnie and Mikey didn't even have the courage to breath. Who would in a situation like this? They remembered the fight through Moria, and that was nowhere near pleasant. They were more than willing to keep themselves out of this attack if it meant avoiding a similar experience.

They watched the faces of several passing Orcs, and they seemed much more terrifying than the Orcs from Moria. And judging by their size, Donnie and Mikey had feeling they wouldn't last very long against them with the weapons they had. It'd probably take just one of those Orcs to shove them both down and kill them.

It was at times like these when the two turtles wondered why they left the safety of the Shire. If they had just minded their own business, neither of them would've been here! In fact, why had they even opened their big mouths at the Council of Bishop?! Why didn't they just stay quiet and let Leo and Raph go off with the rest of the Fellowship?! But then Donnie and Mikey came back to their senses and felt guilty. No, they couldn't have done that to Leo. He was their brother, and they cared about him too much to let him go off on his own.

But still, it would've been better if none of this had happened.

Just then, both Donnie and Mikey heard a rustling sound from one of the trees in front of them. Their eyes narrowed and they looked at it more closely. However, to their relief, they saw that it was Leo! The blue clad turtle was glancing over his shoulder, trying to spot any advancing Orcs. Speaking of which, a couple more ran right between the log and the tree. Afterwards, when Donnie and Mikey were certain that no more were coming yet, they took this as an opportunity to get their brother's attention.

"Leo!" Donnie whispered.

Leo turned his head, seeing them beckoning to them.

"Hide here, quick!" Mikey urged.

However, both of them soon became confused. They were certain that Leo had heard them, yet he didn't make a move to rush over to them. In fact, the turtle had a sad look in his eyes.

Mikey leaned over to his smart brother confusedly, "What's he doin'?"

Donnie frowned, studying Leo closely. He could tell that he was up to something. There had to be some sort of reason for why he was staying where he was. Leo shook his head, and immediately Donnie realized what he was doing.

"He's leaving." He muttered in disbelief.

Mikey's baby blue eyes widened the moment he heard that and glanced back at Leo. Why was he leaving? He couldn't just go to Mordor on his own! He'd be killed!

"No!" Mikey said with a shake of his head.

Before Donnie knew what was happening, his baby brother abruptly stood up from the log.

"Mikey!" He hissed, standing up as well.

Donnie had no idea why he stood up, because it was far too late to hide again now. There were more Orcs in the distance, and they had spotted the two turtles! Donnie and Mikey simply froze, not sure what to do now. There was nowhere else to hide. However, Donnie then realized that they hadn't seen Leo yet, which gave him an idea. A crazy idea that just might work. He knew there was no way he and Mikey could change Leo's mind, so the least they could do was buy him some time to get away.

He looked back to his older brother and whispered, "Run, Leo. Go."

Mikey then exchanged glances with his brother, immediately realizing what he had in mind, despite him not being very bright. The two turtles gave each other a nod before they turned towards the Orcs.

"Hey!" Donnie shouted to them, waving his hand, "Hey you! Over here!"

"Come and get us!" Mikey shouted, jumping up and down and also waving his arms.

Without a second thought, the Orcs started running towards the two turtles. Donnie and Mikey twirled around and ran off into the woods, hoping they would follow. They didn't look back, at least not immediately. They were hoping to get as far away from Leo as they possibly could. Hopefully he was on the run right now.

Both turtles could tell that at least some of the Orcs were following them. They could hear them roaring from behind as they were dimly aware of the Orcs snorting breaths. Finally, they risked a look, and both slightly paled. Oh, there was a lot alright. To many, to be precise.

"It's working, D!" Mikey exclaimed happily, not taking the situation as bad as his brother was.

"I know it's working!" Donnie snapped, pushing him along, "Run!"

So far, their plan was working as they were keeping ahead of the Orcs and drawing them away from Leo. They just hoped they could keep it up, and that nothing unexpected would happen. Both turtles looked around the forest as they ran, trying to see where the rest of their companions were. So far, all they saw were the Orcs. Where was everyone?! They could really use some help right now! Even though they were keeping ahead, both turtles were starting to lose their breath. Neither Donnie nor Mikey knew how much longer they could go.

If only Casey and Keno hadn't left them by themselves. But that couldn't be helped. Donnie just hoped that the Orcs didn't start shooting arrows at them, otherwise they'd be in more trouble. He could, however, hear the Orcs getting angry. Apparently they hadn't realized how fast turtles could be on their feet, despite the common believe that turtles were slow. Though, in all honesty, Donnie and Mikey hadn't realized it either, but they were sure as heck thankful for it. As long as they were distracting the enemy, they knew Leo had a chance at escaping.

The things they did and would do for their family and kin.

Donnie and Mikey soon saw more Orcs coming down from left and right. That was slightly unexpected, but nothing they couldn't handle. One of the Orcs suddenly lunged at them, but they ducked and barely missed it's hands. Okay, maybe this was starting to become more difficult after all. Donnie and Mikey didn't dare yell for help, because that would just alert more of the enemy to their presence. But they were running out of breath fast, and if they stopped, they knew they were done for.

However, both turtles found themselves stopping sooner than expected. There were hundreds of Orcs running down the hill right in front of them. Now they were coming from all directions. Donnie and Mikey realized, to their horror, that they were boxed in! What were they gonna do now?! Why did it seem like all the Orcs were interested in _them _all of a sudden? Had they killed their friends and were now coming to finish them off?

"Where do these guys keep coming from?!" Donnie squawked fearfully.

"I know, dude!" Mikey cried, just as frightened.

As one of the Orcs approached and rose it's sword at the two turtles, they heard a sudden shout. Donnie and Mikey looked over and saw Bradford rushing towards them, his sword drawn. Bradford charged in front of them and sent his blade right through the creature before it could attack the two turtles.

Bradford made Donnie and Mikey get behind him as he rose his sword to defend himself. There were many, but fortunately the Gondorian Wolf was holding his own and preventing the Orcs from getting near them. But the enemy was soon forcing the three companions back, and what's worse, Donnie and Mikey saw more coming from behind. Bradford was alerted to it, though, and changed directions to try and fight some of them off.

However, Donnie and Mikey couldn't let Bradford fight alone. Taking out their weapons, the two turtles charged towards the Orcs despite their fear and began fighting them off as well. As they did, they would also grab some sharp rocks and throw them at the Orcs near them. This proved to be much easier for them as they were able to change directions faster to fend off the Orcs. So far so good. Donnie and Mikey were starting to think that if they kept this up, they should be fine.

But then they wanted to kick themselves more and more Orcs came pouring down the hill towards them.

"There's just too many!" Donnie cried as he swiped an Orc of it's feet and then using his naginata blade to stab it and kill it.

Bradford seemed to notice this as well, as he reached to his belt, pulled out his horn, and before anyone knew what was happening, the Gondorian blew it.

* * *

The enemies numbers were thinning, and it was about time.

Usagi and the rest of the Fellowship had pursued the Uruks to another abandoned structure. Most of the creatures kept going down into the forest, while others stayed to fight against the rest of the company. Little good it did them as the Fellowship was slaughtering them with ease.

Keno stabbed a few Orcs with a tanto blade before shooting several with his bow and arrow. Casey went on full force, chopping down as many Orcs as he could with his axe. Usagi meanwhile blocked, kicked, and stabbed any Orc that came his way.

After all the Uruks were defeated, they began to relax for a brief moment. Unfortunately, they knew there were more down in the forest, and Usagi knew they'd have to get to them before they got to the Turtles.

Usagi turned to Casey and Keno, "Why didn't stay with Donatello and Michelangelo?!"

"It wasn't our fault!" Casey answered defensively.

"We saw the Uruks approaching," The young Elf explained, "We came to warn you."

Before Usagi could argue further, the sound of a horn filled the air. Casey looked around to find the source of the noise, but couldn't depict where it was coming from. Usagi and Keno, however, turned their heads south, to where the rest of the Uruk-hai were running. After listening a little while longer, they soon realized it was no Orc horn.

"The horn of Gondor!" Keno exclaimed.

"Bradford." Usagi muttered, and then abruptly started running down into the forest, after the Orcs, leaving Casey and Keno behind.

* * *

A couple more times, Bradford blew his horn, hoping the others would hear it. But after he finished one more blow, he was forced to defend himself again as more Uruk-hai advanced. Bradford had no doubt that somebody would've heard that, but he wasn't so sure it'd be of any use at this point. For even if the sound was loud enough for his comrades to hear, they'd still have to battle their way through thousands of Uruks. And the Gondorian Wolf feared that they might be too late to help by the time they arrived.

But Bradford knew he couldn't think that, though, especially while in the middle of battle. The least he could do was make sure he, Donnie, and Mikey stayed in one piece, in case somebody _did _reach them. He quickly ducked under an Uruk's swing before cutting it in the leg and stabbing through the chest. Donnie and Mikey tackled another Uruk before stabbing it with the bladed side of their weapons.

Unfortunately, it didn't seem to matter how many Uruks the three of them killed, as more just kept coming. Oroku Saki had definitely been busy in the caverns of Isengard if he had been able to create so many of these creatures. No dubt he was making more right this minute. The number was becoming to much for them to handle.

"Go, run!" Bradford shouted to Donnie and Mikey as he grabbed them and pushed them away from the Uruks. However, they didn't get very far as the Orcs took this as an opportunity to kill the Gondorian and snatch the two turtles. But Bradford proved to be master swordsman as he cut down more Orcs with sword and even slashing a few with his claws. He could feel the sweat pouring down his face with every swing he made, and ignored the fresh cuts on his arms. Donnie and Mikey threw more rocks at the enemy to slow them down. If one one of the Uruks got near them, they tried to stab and bat them away as best as they could and let Bradford finish them off.

However, as the three companions were distracted fighting, they failed to notice the Uruk leader, Lutz, come over the hill. Lurtz glanced over at Bradford, Donnie, and Mikey. When he was certain that Gondorian was a good ways away from the two turtles, the Uruk leader gnashed his teeth and reached behind his back. He pulled out a large black bow.

Bradford was now fighting madly, swinging his sword wildly as slashed more and more Orcs that came his way.

Lurtz reached behind his back again, pulling out an arrow from the quiver on his back.

Bradford slashed another Orc with his claws before kicking another Orc in the leg and decapitating it.

The Uruk leader placed the arrow on the bow, stretched it back, and aimed.

Bradford continued to stand his ground as he sliced another Orcs arm off before slitting it's throat.

Lurtz fired the arrow.

And it hit Bradford right on the left shoulder!

Right there and then, everything went still. Bradford stumbled back, letting out a grunt of pain as his breath all of sudden became heavy, and he fell to his knees on the ground. Donnie and Mikey stopped mid-fight and looked over at him in shock and horror! They almost stopped fighting for a moment, but then immediately increased their attacks. No. Not another loss. Not so soon! They weren't going to let Bradford die! The Uruk leader roared in triumph as the rest of the enemy became all the more eager to attack and made their towards the two turtles.

But even though Bradford felt himself weakening, he noticed the enemy approaching, and did something that shocked Donnie and Mikey. Letting out a battle cry, the Gondorian Wolf rose to his feet and swung his sword at the enemy, killing two more. The Uruk leader descended down the hill, his eyes remained focused on the wolf. He was stubborn one, he'd give him that. The creature growled and lifted his bow again, shooting another arrow. Bradford turned to look at him, but felt the arrow fly straight into his stomach.

That had more of an effect on him. He dropped to his knees again, gasping. Donnie and Mikey still stood there, looking at their friend in shock. They didn't even realize they had let go of the rocks and let them drop to the ground.

Bradford looked up at them and just stared into their the eyes. The world around him was becoming a haze. The only thing he could see were the two turtles, and the expressions on their faces. They were horrified as their eyes brimmed with tears. They knew he was dying, and there was nothing they could do about it. Every breath within the Gondorian Wolf became heavier and heavier. He could feel the blood trickle down from beneath his armor, but he didn't care. He could feel the excruciating pain of the arrows within him, but he paid no mind. What could he do? What could anybody do? He could feel his consciousness slowly begin to slip away.

However, that didn't mean he couldn't do something that would make his last moments worth while. It was almost funny, because right here, everything became so clear to Bradford. He regretted trying to take the Ring from Leonardo. He realized that he had been wrong all along. The Ring couldn't save Gondor. In fact, it'd just bring his people to ruin. They'd all be trying to seize it, and take it as their own. Perhaps it was best that the Ring never went to his city.

He could hear more Uruks approaching, and he knew they wanted to take Donnie and Mikey. He couldn't let that happen. He _wouldn't _let that happen. Bradford cared for these terrapins, more than he had ever realized. They were innocent, and didn't deserve to suffer such a fate. The Gondorian Wolf swore to himself that he would fight as much as he was able to keep them safe. And that's exactly what he did. He rose to his feet once more and sent his fist straight into the jaw of one of the Uruks. He then seized the beast by the shoulder, pulled it towards him, and ran his sword right into it's stomach.

Now frustrated, Lurtz raised his bow once more to fire a third arrow and end the wolf once and for all. He fired the arrow, which hit Bradford right in the chest. Bradford couldn't take it anymore as fell to his knees again, and this time, he didn't get up.

Donnie and Mikey had seen enough. They were determined not to lose their friend as they let out a battle cry, rose their weapons and attempted to charge at the Orcs. But the Orcs easily grabbed the two turtles and put them over their shoulders and immediately started to run out of the forest.

Bradford could hear several feet running away as knelt there on the ground. Each footstep felt like an echo to him, as well as his breath. He knew this was his last day on Middle-Earth. After the wounds he had received, there was no way of getting better. He coughed as he looked up at the face of the grinning Uruk leader. He watched the beast lift his bow and aim it at his head. This final arrow would be the official end of Chris Bradford, son of the Steward of Gondor, and he was ready to accept his fate.

Lurtz opened his mouth and growled with pleasure. Bradford tried not to look at the disgusting and crooked teeth within his mouth. That was the last thing he wanted to see. But he knew the last thing he'd feel was pain. It didn't matter. To Bradford, this was a grand sacrifice. He was dying with honor. He was dying for his friends, for the Turtles, and especially for Gondor. If only he could've seen the White City one last time, to be welcomed home by the blowing silver trumpets. To embrace his father and his adopted brother one last time. But Bradford knew life was always unexpected. Wherever he went after this, he hoped to be eventually reunited with his family.

Lurtz pulled back the arrow, preparing to release it. However, he never got the chance to do so as suddenly someone ran into him and tackled him to the ground. The arrow wizzed past Bradford and hit a nearby tree. He looked over to see that it was Usagi who had tackled the Uruk leader. The ronin jumped back to his feet and swung for the beast's head. But Lurtz had enough time to duck and launch himself at the rabbit. He made an attempt to swing for the ronin's chest, but he fortunately avoided the blade just in time. Usagi then rose his own katana and clashed it against the Uruk leader's sword.

They fought for several seconds, each blow nearly decapitating each opponent. Usagi seemed to be doing well, but then felt the creature force his arms to his side. Before the ronin could straighten back up, Lurtz suddenly pushed him against a tree, making him lose his grip on his sword, and then threw his shield at the rabbit's neck. Judging by how sharp the shield was, it should've cut off Usagi's head. But as fortune would have it, the shield had two sharp tips on each side and stabbed the tree instead. The only bad part was that Usagi was trapped between the tree and the shield. He was at the enemy's mercy, which he doubted the Uruk leader had.

Lurtz rose his sword and prepared to make the killing blow, but Usagi managed to loosen the shield and ducked just as the blade made contact with the tree. Usagi punched Lurtz in the gut but the Uruk leader grabbed the ronin and flipped him onto his back. Lurtz rose his sword and tried to bring it down on the rabbit, only for Usagi to roll to the side and kick the Uruk leader in the knee, causing Lurtz to stumble. Taking advantage of the moment, Usagi pulled out a knife from his kimono and stabbed the Uruk leader in the leg, causing him to growl in pain. However, Lurtz quickly shrugged it off as he punched Usagi in the face before lifting him up and head-butting him, and then threw the ronin to the ground.

The Uruk leader then pulled the knife out of his leg, licking the blood of the blade before throwing it at Usagi, who deflected it with his katana. Lurtz bent down and grabbed his own sword as the two continued their duel, with Usagi taking the advantage with fast and powerful blows before cutting off the Uruk leader's arm and stabbing him in the chest. But then Lurtz did something the ronin did not expect. Instead of resisting, the Uruk leader grabbed the blade of the sword and shoved it deeper into his chest, all while growling at the rabbit. Slightly confused and disgusted, Usagi ripped his katana out of Lurtz's chest and decapitated him, watching the Uruk leader crumple to ground dead.

Usagi panted heavily as he felt blood trickle out of his nose. He then ran over to Bradford, who was lying on the ground, three arrows in his chest and his horn cloven in two. Usagi knelt down by his side as the Gondorian Wolf gasped for breath, his face completely pale. He looked up at him and tried to speak as best as he could.

"They took the little ones!" He gasped while coughing.

"Lay still." Usagi ordered calmly, examining the wounds.

Bradford then grasped the ronin by the shoulder, "Leonardo. Where is Leonardo?"

Usagi looked down for a moment, "I let him go." He sighed.

"Then you did what I couldn't," The Gondorian replied with a small nod, "I tried to take the Ring from him."

Usagi looked at him compassionately, knowing perfectly well of the temptation that had taken over the wolf during the journey. However, he saw that that madness was gone.

"The Ring is beyond our reach now." He informed him.

"Forgive me," Bradford said with sorrow, "I did not see it. I have failed you all."

Usagi shook his head reassuringly, "No, Bradford. You fought bravely."

He then made a move to pull the arrows out of his comrade, the Gondorian stopped him and shook his head firmly.

"Leave it," Bradford said, a slight hint of hopelessness in his voice, "It's over. The world of Mortals will fall, and all will come to darkness." A tear rolled down his cheek, "And my city to ruin!"

Usagi could see the grief and despair in the wolf's eyes. Part of him wondered if he was right. After such a brutal attack like this, had they already lost? Leo had left on his own to Mordor. Donnie and Mikey had been captured by Orcs. And none of them had a clue where Raph was. It almost felt like there was nothing they could do now. The Shredder and Oroku Saki had struck a heavy blow against the Fellowship.

However, Usagi looked at Bradford sternly and said, "I do not know what strength is in my blood, but I swear to you I will not let the White City fall, nor our people fail."

A small smile came to the Gondorian Wolf's now blue lips, "Our people...our people."

Usagi nodded to him. He would make sure to keep his promise and protect Gondor, despite all of his previous thoughts. It was his city too, and he would not see it burnt to ashes by the forces of Mordor. Usagi could see a new found respect within Bradford's eyes as he looked at him. All the tension between the two had faded, that much was certain.

"I would've followed you to the end, my brother." Bradford said as his breath shortened, "My captain. My king."

After that last word was said, the Gondorian Wolf suddenly stopped breathing and went limp. Usagi's face saddened as he bent down and kissed him on the forehead, a sign of respect and farewell.

"Be at peace, son of Gondor." He whispered.

There was a rustling sound from behind him and Casey and Keno came around the corner. When they saw what had happened, they lowered their weapons and bowed their heads in respect.

Usagi stood up and turned to them, "They will look for his coming from the White Tower, but he will not return." He said solemnly.

* * *

With there being no sign of any more Uruk, Leo had stopped at the rocky beach, holding the Ring in his hand as tears streamed down his face as he silently cried.

Why did this have to happen? Why did the Ring have to come to him of all people? As he stared out at the river, Leo once again thought about how he wished the Ring had never come to him and that none of this had happened. That he could just be at home with his brothers in the quiet safety of the Shire. But then he remembered what Splinter had told him back in the Mines of Moria.

_"So do all who live to see such times, but that is not for them to decide. All you have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to you."_

Leo's face hardened as he clutched the Ring in his hand. No. No, he couldn't give up. Not after everything. He now understood what he had to do. And he was determined to do it.

Filled with a new determination, Leo put the Ring in his vest pocket and walked over to the nearby boat, pushing it off from the shore before getting in and grabbing an oar. However, he didn't get far as Raph came bursting out of the woods, running towards the beach.

"Leo!" Raph called out desperately as he ran ankle deep into the water.

However, Leo ignored him as he kept paddling forward. But Raph wasn't willing to give up so easily as walked further into the deep water.

"Go back, Raph!" Leo shouted, glancing back at his brother, "I'm going to Mordor alone!"

"Of course you!" Raph shouted, not stopping even as the water went above his waist, "And I'm coming with you!"

"You can't swim!" Leo called back, but Raph didn't listen as he dove into the water and tried to swim, but began sinking fast, "Raph!" Leo called out, desperately trying to change his brother's mind. But Raph still continued as he soon sunk under the water, "RAPH!" Leo cried, turning back.

Raph sunk like a rock as the sunlight became dimmer and dimmer as he was out of breath and quickly loosing consciousness. At that moment, he felt like he really was going to die. And yet there was still so much he had wanted to do, such as announce his love to the beautiful Mona Lisa. But then, he felt a large three fingered hand grab his arm tightly, and he grabbed back as he felt himself being pulled up.

After grabbing Raph's arm, Leo pulled him out of the water as hard as he could and onto the boat. Raph was drenched from head to toe and the two brothers sat in silence for a moment before Leo spoke.

"Why...why did you do that, Raph?" He said, voice dangerously wavering as tears fell down his cheeks, dampening his blue mask, "Why would you do something so...so _stupid?_"

Raph sniffled, tears already falling from his eyes, "I made a promise," Raph said, his voice also shaking, "'Don't you leave him, Raphael.' And I don't mean to. I don't mean to."

More tears began to spill out of Leo's eyes, "Oh, Raph." He said before the two brother held each other in a tight embrace, tears pouring down their faces as they dared not let go of each other.

"Come on." Leo said as they released from their hug. They then grabbed the oars and rowed their boat down the stream to the other side of the river.

* * *

After putting Bradford's body in a comfortable position in one of the boats, Usagi gently pushed the boat into the water. It immediately began to follow the tide, heading straight for the waterfall. Usagi, Casey, and Keno lowered their heads in respect as the boat containing Bradford finally reached the waterfall and went over the edge.

Keno then looked over towards the other side of the river and noticed that Leo and Raph had gotten out of the boat and were walking into another forest. He quickly rushed over to the last boat they had and began to push it towards the water.

"Hurry!" He called to the others, "Leo and Raph have reached the eastern shore!"

The young Elf glanced over at Usagi, expecting him to agree, but was surprised to see the ronin silent. He bound his wounds and then put on two vambraces that he had gotten from Bradford. Both of them resembled the White Tree of Gondor. Usagi would keep these in memory to the wolf. He then looked across the river to where the two turtles had vanished. Seeing the expression on the ronin's face made Keno realize that he had already made his decision.

"You don't want to follow them." Keno muttered.

Usagi sighed and finally said, "Leonardo's fate is no longer in our hands."

Casey and Keno let those words sink in, and they couldn't help but feel guilty, as they knew Usagi spoke the truth.

"Then it's all been for nothing!" Casey said hopelessly, "The Fellowship is done, yo!"

Usagi glanced at his fellow companions, a confident look on his face, and he shook his head, "Not as long as we have each other. We will not abandon Donatello and Michelangelo to torment and death. Not while we have strength left."

Surprisingly, that made Casey and Keno feel a tad better. Their hearts filled with a new determination. And if Oroku Saki and whatever forces wanted to stand in their way and fight, then so be it.

"Leave all that can be spared. We travel light." Usagi said, proceeding to gather some supplies as Casey and Keno did the same. Usagi put a spare dagger in a sheath before turning to his comrades with a small smirk, "Let us hunt some Orcs."

Casey and Keno glanced at each other, big smiles forming on their lips.

Then Casey shouted, "Yes!" and ran after the ronin. Keno rolled his amusingly as he followed them as well. The would find and rescue Donnie and Mikey, and nothing was going to stop them.

* * *

After getting out of their boats, Leo and Raph walked through the forest and later climbing to the top of huge mountain. From there, they could see tons of mountains as well as a giant marshland in the distance. However, the thing that stood out most, was the dark reddish-orange sky above the farthest mountain.

"Mordor," Leo said as he and Raph stared at their destination, "I hope the guys find a safer route."

"We may yet, Leo," Raph told him reassuringly, "We may yet."

Leo turned back to face his younger brother, "Raph, I'm glad your with me." He said with smile.

Raph smiled back, "Anytime, brother." He replied. The two brothers hugged one last time before descending down the mountain.

They were going to Mordor. And they were going _Together._

_To be continued..._


	28. Extra: Cast

**Hey guys! Calmoose here! I want to let you know that I will be working on other stories now that this one is done, so yeah. Check out my other stories, please.**

Chapter 28: Cast

Seth Green as Leonardo

Sean Astin as Raphael

Rob Paulsen as Donatello

Greg Cipes as Michelangelo

Hoon Lee as Splinter

Yuki Matsuzaki as Usagi

Josh Peck as Casey Jones

Jason Marsden as Keno

Clancy Brown as Bradford

Kevin Michael Richardson as Shredder and Oroku Saki

Minae Noji as Tang Shen

Kelly Hue as Karai

Sean Schemmel as Yukio Mashimi

Rachael Lillis as Tomoe Ame

Nolan North as Lord Bishop

Ian Holm as Bilbo

Craig Parker as Haldir

Yuri Lowenthal as Foot Soldier

**TMNT 2012: The Two Towers coming next summer.**


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